Together with Richter
by Goron King Darunia
Summary: Richter and Emil develop a carnal relationship. A series of awkward steps in that relationship lead to an unbreakable bond.
1. The First Time

A/N: So, this is the clean version that can be found on DeviantArt as well. Check my profile for the full adult version. **Almost anything**** in bold font is an edit that deviates from the original adult content version.**  
Part 2 of KitKatFang's Promised Protection Story  
Warning! This story contains male-male, same-size, soft, oral vore, stuffing, consumption of alcohol to the point of inebriation, yaoi, confessions of love between two males, and male-male kissing. If you do not know what vore is, see my profile or KitKatFang's profile for a brief explanation.  
In all of my writings, I use an asterisk (*) to mark jargon, words, and phrases that I felt needed some extra explanation. These explanations can be found at the end of the story, in order of appearance.

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Richter and Emil walked side by side through the vast fields of Sylvarant. As if by some blessed miracle, they had been allowed to walk free after all that had come to pass at the Ginnungagap; it appears as though Verius, the Summon Spirit of Heart, had spared them all. Verius must have somehow found a way to separate both personalities, Ratatosk and Emil, into two separate bodies without the use of an effigy or sacrifice. Ratatosk, the recently separate personality of Emil, and Richter were able to combine their powers with the Centurions' and managed by some wondrous twist of fate to seal the door to the demon world, Nifelheim, without mana. The world was safe at last from the demons beyond the Ginnungagap and the World Tree began to flourish under the protection of Martel.

Ratatosk was left once again to guard the door, but that's not to say he was imprisoned there, and from time to time, a bit of wanderlust carried him and his band of monsters to the surface once more. He would roam wherever he pleased, and on occasion, ran into one of the members of their little band of heroes. Most often, he would run into Emil, who still had a bit of Ratatosk's strength and courage, perhaps at the cost of a bit of his kind and tender, child-like spirit, which Ratatosk himself even felt the presence of within him.

On this day, however, it was just Emil and Richter, alone on the mount of a hill, taking in the beauty of the vast expanse of grass and scattered flowers, stretching out to meet the distant, unobtainable horizon. To Richter, it almost seemed as though Aster was smiling down at them, from wherever he was. After all, Verius connects all hearts, so maybe, just maybe, in some small way, that connection kept Aster alive in Richter's heart. He could remember it all so well: Aster's smile, personality, voice, laughter, those tender eyes, that courage… Those memories never faded, still clear as crystal in his mind; and yet he knew that the Aster he remembered was long since dead and there was no way of undoing that, no matter how much he might have wished for it.

And yet, as he lay in the grass with Emil, in the shade of a full, green oak, seeing that familiar smile, it almost felt like Aster was sending him a sign. It was time for Richter to live his own life, not for Aster's sake, but to meet his own ends, to seek out his own happiness. Richter's lips curled into an uncharacteristic smile; it had taken a long while, but he had finally grown accustomed to smiling again. He slid one hand out from beneath his head and slowly inched it across the soft, green grass toward Emil's. First, he barely brushed against Emil's fingers, and when it aroused neither a reaction nor a protest, he proceeded to discretely intertwine his blunt fingers with Emil's, whose skin was soft and tender against Richter's. Emil turned his gaze away from the crisp blue sky to face Richter, a cute smile framed by flushed cheeks and eyes squinted in an expression of pure joy and contentment; and Richter, shyly but surely, followed suit as Emil gripped his hand tightly in exchange.

Aqua, who still followed Richter out of habit, sighed as she hovered invisibly near the lower branches of the large tree. Once Ratatosk had been freed from his obligations at the World Tree, guarding the Ginnungagap seemed a much less monolithic task, so he freed the Centurions from many of their duties and allowed them to roam wherever they wished. They still had to control the monsters of their element and keep tabs on the mana flow of the world, and in the end, Ratatosk's orders were of the highest priority. But it was a better life (if Centurions could be considered "alive") than the one they had led before, lingering at Ratatosk's side as he guarded the door to the demonic realm, a job with no end in sight. Now, at least, they all had a little bit of freedom. Tenebrae was off somewhere too, probably following Marta around out of the same habit Aqua had. Aqua, however, was a little more… _clingy_ than most Centurions. Ever since Richter had stormed the Ginnungagap with Aster that fateful day, Aqua had wanted nothing more than to be by his side… _forever_… To protect him, to support him, to help him achieve his goals because that was just the kind of Centurion she was. In the same way Tenebrae was known for being spiteful, Aqua was known to have strong convictions and potent emotions.

Though she had fallen in love with Richter and dedicated herself to helping him avenge Aster, she was still bound to Ratatosk no matter what, so she really could not hate him, (not that she forgave him for what he had done, but he was… tolerable…) And now, even though Richter no longer sought revenge, Aqua was still dedicated to him. She was still deeply entranced by him, infatuated to the point of jealousy when he took his eyes off her in favor of someone else. This had been a source of many fights between them on their journey, since Aqua was in the habit of torturing anyone who seemed to catch Richter's eye. More than once she had sicced a Polwigle on an unfortunate girl that Aqua felt had been talking to Richter quite long enough. Richter had often reprimanded her, but as long as she thought she was Richter's one-and-only, she was content, no matter the consequences.

However, there was one obstacle that had always irked her, _Emil_… Of all the people that Richter had talked to, Emil was the only one Richter genuinely seemed to like, and that made Aqua _furious_. She knew it was only because he reminded Richter of Aster, but she still couldn't make herself accept it. Somebody _else_ catching Richter's attention, unacceptable… especially if that somebody was a reincarnation of Ratatosk (though she did not realize this at first). For a long time, chasing him away had not been enough for her, though when avoiding him was necessary, she followed Richter's orders and ignored Emil. For ages, she would have liked to just kill him, get rid of him permanently, but Richter had always had other plans. So she complied… for a while… But there was one time she couldn't hold herself back, one time she couldn't obey Richter any more, she just _had_ to punish Emil, she _had to_. Every fiber of her being screamed at her to do it, and after all, it was for the best… or so she thought…

It had happened not so very long ago, while Emil and Ratatosk were still united in one body. Richter had needed his assistance for something. You see, there was a stone, hidden deep within a cave, a stone that Richter needed but could not reach. Aqua herself didn't really know what he wanted it for, she had never heard of an Yromem* Stone before, nor did she know what it did, but if Richter wanted it, she would help him get it. However, when they searched the depths of the cave, they could only walk in circles, and when Aqua finally discovered the path they needed, they reached a dead end. Richter saw an etching on the wall at the end of the passage, it vaguely resembled the pattern on the walls and floor of the Ginnungagap with a symbol that he remembered seeing on Ratatosk's core. Though Aqua tried her best, she could not break the seal.

Richter knew what that meant, only someone with the ability to utilize Ratatosk's power directly could open the path he sought. This could only be two people, Emil or Marta. Though he would have liked to simply tear the core from Marta's forehead, he knew that while Emil was around, he could not touch her. And besides, if he could obtain the core, he could destroy it, and there would be no need for the Stone. Getting her to come along willingly would be nearly impossible… and moreover, he didn't much care for her company. That left Emil as his only option. As a Knight of Ratatosk, he ought to have the power to break the seal, and if he brought only Emil along, he could avoid annoyances such as Marta and Tenebrae. After all, Emil trusted him, surely he wouldn't be hard to win over.

Aqua was reluctant, but after a great deal of convincing, Aqua accepted. She had opted to keep her invisible form, and had gritted her teeth as Richter invited Emil to come along. She fumed silently behind them; each time Richter helped Emil, Aqua became more and more enraged. Watching Richter fussing over Emil all the time, defending him from monsters, lending him his coat, Aqua's blood boiled at the sight; and at the end of their journey, Richter gave Emil the very thing that they'd worked so hard to find. Then, he said something Aqua couldn't believe… He called Emil _beautiful_… That was the final straw. She completely lost it…

Before, she had maintained a moderate disdain for Emil, didn't like him at all, but as long as he wasn't in the way, she didn't bother giving it any thought. But _now_? Now that Richter had revealed his true feelings, Aqua was completely in denial. Richter belonged to _her_ and to her _only_… No little snot-nosed brat was going to steal him away from her. In a blind rage, she summoned a fleet of tortoise monsters and ordered them to kill Emil at any cost. With both Emil and Richter bearing wounds from the venture up until that point, neither could do anything against her. Richter tried to reason with her, but it was no use; reason had no bearing in the mind of a maiden whose heart over-ruled her logic in jealous ambition. Unable to lift a sword, Richter did the only thing he could… he grabbed Emil by the arm and ran.

They escaped into a narrow passageway, just out of reach for the huge, lumbering monsters. However, their overwhelming strength was too much for the cavern wall, and it soon began to crumble in on the two males. Richter had no other options, he had _promised_ to protect Emil, and after losing Aster, he refused to allow the same thing to happen to the boy who now shared his face. He had never needed to use his powers before, but now, he had nothing left to use to defend the young blond. After brief explanations and rushed words of comfort, Richter somewhat convinced Emil to trust him, and Emil allowed the half-elf to strip him down. The only advantage Richter still had over Aqua was her obsession. She would never dare to harm him, even at the expense of letting Emil live. Her summoning ability prevented Richter from shielding Emil in any usual method; after all, Aqua was the Centurion of Water. She could summon the slimiest creatures of the cavern to slither between them and steal Emil away from Richter's protective grasp; he himself had been surprised that she hadn't thought of doing that as soon as they had slipped into the narrow passage.

Richter knew of no other alternative, and once he had Emil prepared, he began the embarrassing ordeal. Richter had never really thought of his power as a gift, it had always seemed a curse, but at least it was of some use now. Richter had long possessed the ability to consume large quantities, even control the rate at which digestion took place, but now, despite infrequent use, that latent talent had been enhanced beyond fathomable reason. He had never imagined using such powers, especially against people, but now, as the only method left for Emil's salvation, he didn't have time to think about practicality or propriety. Slowly, he began to wrap Emil in his lips, and as steadily and gently as he could, began to consume the boy. Even though he was quite conscious of his actions, Richter couldn't believe what he was doing, almost like a dream; only the sensations proved it was real. If it wasn't for the fact that he could see Emil's body slowly disappearing into his own, taste the mild salt of the boy's sweat-slicked skin against his tongue with every swallow, feel his stomach stretch to accommodate the wriggling blond, undulating with every tiny movement he made, hear the boy's soft whimpering muffled by the walls of his engorged midriff, and smell the uniquely Emil-like scent that Richter recognized was very much akin to Aster's… if it weren't for these constant stimuli, Richter would not have believed he was actually doing something so unthinkable.

Even as Emil shook with fright, Richter never wavered, only pausing long enough to give the boy a reassuring pat before continuing. When at last the deed was done, the three of them - Richter, Emil, and Aqua - were all _very aware_ of what had just happened. Aqua was too shaken at the time to even respond, and faded back to invisibility with breathless awe.

This was Richter's first experience with such things. It was… amazing; a feeling that he would never have conceived of on his own, (though that may just be because such sensations were not experienced by many _normal_ people under _normal_ circumstances.) Emil also found the whole experience to be amazing - terrifying and traumatizing at first, but amazing - and when at last Richter released him, there was much for the two to discuss.

Lying in the grass with Emil brought back such memories… The time between that first chance experience and their current lives, the good times, the hard times, the quiet times, the impassioned times, all the time he had spent with Emil came flooding back to him. Though it was shorter than the time he spent with Aster, his time with Emil had become just as precious, maybe even more so. They were memories Richter held dear, memories of his own transcendence, learning to forgive himself, and finding peace of mind. Richter sighed, and faded into a daydream - a panoramic montage of these memories - gripping Emil's hand tightly and smiling …

Just after Emil had fallen asleep for the second time*, wrapped in the soft, warm folds of Richter's belly, Aqua had reappeared to confront Richter. She had calmed down significantly, but was still obviously infuriated.

"Master Richter… Why'd you protect that wretch? He's our enemy and you know it! I could have gotten rid of him _easily_…" She whipped her tail back and forth irately.

"I don't want to be _rid of him_, Aqua. Enemy or not, when he's like that… I just…"

"I said it a _thousand_ times before! He is _not_ Aster! You even agreed with me! You're just prolonging his life, you know!? Eventually, we'll probably have to kill him…"

"I don't believe that will be necessary, but even so, Aqua, now is not the time. And yours were not the reasons…"

"M-my reasons?! Master Richter, I…!" she huffed breathlessly, offended and embarrassed all at once.

"You only wanted to kill him because of the things I said to him, you can't lie about that Aqua. You were jealous. You _know_ you were…" Aqua looked askance, unable to deny what he had said, but not willing to admit to it either. Richter continued his lecture, disdain more than apparent in his voice. "You _do_ realize, Aqua, that I can have a relationship with whomever I please? You have absolutely no say in the matter; my personal affairs have nothing to do with you."

"But, Master Richter…!"

"But _nothing_, Aqua! You and I are neither a couple nor under any circumstances will we ever be. It's simply not possible. I merely allow you to… _follow_ me. I appreciate your help greatly, your skills have been invaluable, but your interference in my personal life has gone on quite long enough. If I have to, I'm willing to terminate our… "partnership", for lack of a more appropriate word. If need be, I'm quite willing to crush whatever hopes you have of a relationship with me right here and now, by any means necessary… How do you want to proceed? Shall we just agree upon the facts I have set forth? Or shall we sever this abhorrent tie the hard way? Are you willing to accept that your interference is not welcome in my life, or do I have to convince you by other means that you and I will never share an intimate bond?"

Aqua sniffled, but nodded in response. "I… I understand, Master Richter… I'll go then…" She turned about and began to slink away. "B-but… I still _love_ you…" she squeaked, over her shoulder, face pitiable and moist with tears, her sniveling shrill and impossible to ignore.

Richter sighed, vexed, "Nnnngh… Fine, fine! I'll let you continue _stalking_ me! Just stop bawling like an infant. You'll rupture my eardrums with all that foul shrieking…"

Aqua threw herself into his unwilling arms. "Oh, _thank you_, Master Richter! I knew you loved me, I just _knew_ it!" She wriggled close against his chest, grinning from ear to pointed ear, blushing like a bride.

Richter fumed, but could do nothing about it… too full… not enough energy to push her off of him… so he just sat and he fumed. "Don't you start that again, you hear? I said no such thing… As soon as your jealous antics outweigh your avail, I won't hesitate to reject you again."

"I understand, Master Richter…" She nuzzled closer, and Richter sighed anew.

After a few minutes, Richter spoke again. "I have a condition, though… and if you refuse, I can't allow you to follow me."

"Anything, Master Richter; I'll do anything to make you happy."

"About Emil… you have to leave him alone, alright? I won't tolerate any more of those outbursts…" Aqua looked up, lips parted in preparation to speak, but Richter shushed her immediately. "No, I mean it; no objections, no ifs, ands, or buts about it! You _need_ to leave him _alone_, you got it?" Richter stared coldly at Aqua, unwavering in his resolve. She paused, thought to speak, but withdrew her yet-spoken words before they reached her lips, instead nodding in ascension. Richter sighed, softening his gaze. "Good. That's more like it…" Richter relaxed a bit, Aqua was still clinging to him, but he ignored it. His mind was still not entirely at ease, he wanted to make absolutely sure that he could trust Aqua around Emil before he released him again. And it had to be soon, he was beginning to notice that, though he was still profusely full, he was not _nourished_ and exhaustion was beginning to settle in; he would have to eat some _real_ food soon.

He thought for a moment, he wanted to be able to guarantee Emil's safety, but how? Finally, he came up with a plan, an agreement that Aqua would not refuse. "Aqua…" He shifted a bit, sitting up as best he could while still accommodating his massive stomach. "Aqua, I'm well aware that Emil is not Aster, and I know that we cannot think of him as an ally… however, I do not wish to label him an enemy. You have to understand, I hate Ratatosk as much as you do for what he did to Aster… and to me as a result… but I cannot hate Emil, even if he wants to reawaken Ratatosk… I have one last proposition. In exchange for your agreement to treat Emil as a neutral, I will allow you this one loophole. If it ever comes to a point that Emil jeopardizes our goals with his interference, leaving no other possible course of action, and I cannot bring myself to harm him, I charge you with the duty of doing it in my stead. You may do whatever necessary in that situation, but _only_ in that situation. Until such conditions arise, you must not interfere with my association with Emil, only when there is no other alternative, is that clear? Do we have an agreement?" Richter held out his right hand.

Aqua stared at Richter's hand for a long moment before she finally grasped it with her own. "It's a deal, Mater Richter."

"R-Richter…?" Emil gasped as he was suddenly shaken from a brief nap, finding himself slouched in an awkward hump on a cold, stony floor. The darkness that enveloped him reminded him that he was still deep within the caves. Slimy, wet, and frigid, his skin entirely exposed, cap-a-pie*; except for his boxers, he was very much naked. He lifted himself up to see Richter, wiping a bit of saliva from the corner of his mouth, as he seemed to be lifting himself off his knees.

"Oh, you're awake…" Richter glanced over at Emil as he reached for the blonde's clothes. "Sorry… I had intended you to still be sleeping after I spat you out, but I guess my technique's not that advanced yet… I figured that it might be less traumatic for you that way, but I suppose it didn't matter much…. I'll have a fire going soon, so try to bear the cold for a bit, okay?"

Emil nodded, shivering as he took back his clothes from the half-elf. Suddenly remembering the reason for the whole ordeal, Emil looked around in panic. "Richter! Wh-what happened to Aqua?! I-is she still…?"

Richter cut in, comforting the boy with a rough pat on the shoulder. "It's alright… I talked to her. She won't be bothering us about it anymore. _I promise…_"

Just as Richter had said, within a few minutes, he had a small fire set alight in the middle of the cavern floor, and Emil was grateful for its warmth. Once Richter had removed his gear and settled down on a rock beside Emil, the questions began.

"Umm… So, uh, Richter… where do we go from here?"

"Well, I suppose I'll go about my business as usual, and you'll go back to yours…" Richter completely ignored Emil's perplexed glance. What was _that_ supposed to mean, anyway?

"Umm… R-right… I guess…" Emil stammered. Why was everything so awkward all of a sudden? Well, more awkward than usual… Did he do something wrong? "S-so all you needed me for was getting this stone?" Emil pulled the gem from his bag, taking another admiring inspection in the firelight.

"Yep." Richter bluntly declared. Emil was definitely beginning to think that the half-elf's behavior had something to do with him.

"So, umm, y-you're just going to let me k-keep it then? You d-don't want it?"

"That's right… all yours…" Emil sulked. He was happy to have such a beautiful treasure to keep, but he would have been happier if Richter wasn't so dismissive all of a sudden. He resigned himself to silence, deciding that whatever he had done, he wasn't going to be able to fix it now, no matter how many questions he asked.

They sat for a long time, neither saying a word, until Richter's stomach broke the silence. He sighed as he got to his feet, Emil just noticed how sluggish Richter's movements had become, he looked exhausted. "R-Richter? Are you okay?" Emil cocked his head to the side, trying to catch a glimpse of the half-elf's face.

"Yeah… I'm fine…" Richter moaned. He was quite obviously _not_ fine. He staggered across toward his supplies; his slow strides were shaky and uncertain. Emil gasped and leaped to his feet as Richter stumbled - a decidedly un-Richter-like motion - before his knees buckled and he collapsed on the cold cavern floor.

"Richter!" Emil rushed to his side, grabbing Richter by the shoulder and rolling him from his side onto his back. Emil was relieved to see that Richter was still conscious, but aggrieved at his friend's apparent pain. Emil stammered out something incoherent, some unrelated, stuttered words and primitive, anxious sounds, as he glanced around him. Aqua was nowhere to be found. It was a relief, since his last experience with the Centurion had ended with her attempting to murder him, but at the same time, he could really use her help. He had never seen Richter like this before. He had seen him _wounded_ before, but his arm couldn't possibly be causing him such pain; the bandage still covered the gash, and the bleeding had ceased. Emil checked Richter's forehead. No fever… so there wasn't any sign of infection… What could it be?

Richter's breathing was heavy, labored, and that frightened Emil a great deal. He would have liked to ask Richter directly what pained him, but he was afraid that if he coaxed Richter to speak, he might pass out. Emil fidgeted, rubbing his sweaty hands together as he asked himself what he should do. He shifted his attention from random, panicked thoughts to a focused, deep concern; Richter was attempting to lift himself back to his feet again.

"N-no, Richter! Stay put. You shouldn't strain yourself. Just lie down and rest, i-it's okay. I can get whatever you need…" Richter continued to force himself upright, supporting himself on his unwounded arm. Shaking, he lifted himself about halfway upright before his body refused to cooperate anymore, he gave an exhausted gasp as his arm crumpled beneath his weight; and he lay, breathless once more, in the same position he had started at, winded from the intense effort. He cursed under his breath, being in such a vulnerable position. He rather wished he had passed out, at least that would be an excuse for not being able to even sit up on his own. He dug his nails into the musty filth on the floor of the cavern, and cursed again, barely able to form his hand into a fist. He had no strength left.

Emil, still unclothed, grabbed his own supplies and tucked them under Richter's head. He grabbed a scrap of paper from his journal and a bit of charcoal from the fire. He turned Richter's hand palm-up, opened his fingers and clasped them in a pencil-grip position around the black piece of burned wood. He placed the paper beneath Richter's wrist and placed Richter's hand upon it, poised in a suitable position so that he could write comfortably.

"J-just write out what you need… i-if you can… Just try to be brief… I'm sure I'll figure it out even if you can't write it completely… Do you think you'll be able to manage it? I-I'll come up with something else if you don't think you can. Just d-don't overexert yourself, okay?" Emil went on babbling, not really forming one complete thought, but stringing several together randomly… Richter sighed, but willed himself to move his wrist just enough to scrawl out four tiny letters on the worn piece of paper. He dropped the makeshift pencil with a dull clack, which was just enough to grab Emil's attention, even as he continued to mutter something about using the "one blink - yes; two blinks - no" method. Emil slipped the paper out from under Richter's motionless hand, being careful not to smudge it. He had to squint, the letters were wobbly and nearly invisible, not to mention tiny. However, eventually Emil was able to make out a faint 'F', and then a 'D' at the end. He quickly identified the two squiggles in between as two 'O's; then everything just clicked.

"Ah! O-of course! I should have figured it out sooner! I-I'll fix you something right away, Richter!" Nearly tripping over himself, he rushed over to Richter's things, pulling out a few cooking supplies, all the ingredients he could find, and a few gels. Emil picked out a few apple and orange gels and stuffed them back in Richter's bag, rushing them over as quickly as his bare feet could carry him. Setting the bag down, he realized it would probably be a lot easier for Richter to eat if he was sitting upright. The closest wall was well away from the warm firelight and much too far for Emil to carry Richter, who outsized Emil by at least six inches… and Emil wasn't the _strongest_ of human boys (or at least, the strongest manifestation of Ratatosk…)

However, what Emil lacked in physical prowess, he more than made up for with quick wit and intellect. Seeing neither suitable rocks nor other means of support for the half-elf, he used the only tools he could think of. He grabbed his sword and unsheathed it, then, judging Richter's height, thrust it into the cave floor at a 45-degree angle, and - borrowing Richter's fine blade - did the exact same thing about an inch to the left of his sword. The result was a gentle incline, both the blades lay side by side, the flats of the blades made about a foot wide surface, and Emil gingerly lifted Richter by his underarms, and carefully dragged him the foot or so over to the blades and carefully leaned Richter's upper body against them. It was a proper and ingenious recliner, and Richter seemed more comfortable in the full glow of the warm fire as he lay back on the gentle slope. He sighed contentedly, though still unable to move, and peered at Emil through his exhausted, half-hooded eyes. Forehead sweaty and brow furrowed with mild anguish, he gave Emil a weak smile, it was as good a thank you as he could manage.

It was of little consolation to Emil; Richter's expression rather resembled that of a man on his deathbed, that knowing look that his end was near, and a smile to hide his pain. This was only half-true. Richter indeed attempted to hide his suffering from Emil behind a façade of a grin, but he was far from death. Despite the strain it implemented on his body, having to use his powers as unrehearsed and suddenly as he did, Richter certainly wasn't going to die from it. Still, this was the first time his body had undergone such an unusual regiment, and it was rather perplexed as to what to do with itself. Restore its energy with food, or take the time to sleep off the exhaustion and balance his body again? It didn't know, as most bodies by themselves do not, and was quite fixated on its attempt to do both. He wanted to eat and sleep all at the same time, it was rather annoying, since he would have to sacrifice one for the other… after all, how many people do _you_ know who are blessed (or cursed) with the ability to sleep-eat?

It was uncomfortable, but Richter chose to force himself awake, despite his weary eyelids that refused to remain even 50% open, growing heavier and heavier each moment. It was better, he thought, than allowing himself to drift off to sleep for who-_knows_-how-long… Emil might not be able to wake him for days, even if he only intended to sleep for a moment. It took a great deal of effort, but Richter managed somehow…

Once he had Richter propped up comfortably - or at least as comfortably as he could make him, after all, the flats of a couple of swords and the cold, damp floor of the cave weren't at all comfortable by any standards - Emil once again removed the gels from Richter's pack. They were certainly no substitute for real food, usually reserved for emergencies because they were convenient and easy to utilize, but Emil hoped they would at least be enough to tide Richter over until he could prepare something more sufficient. He knelt beside Richter, holding out the gels. "Do you think you can manage it yourself…? I-if you can't, I'll understand…" Richter cringed as he tried to lift his arm; it felt substantially dense to him, even his fingers were weighted like lead, and all his joints felt rusted, the way a person felled by illness suffers. He struggled to bring his forearm up, but after a few shaky inches, it dropped dully at his side once more. He closed his eyes and sighed; Emil was touched by his expression, the mild undertones of sadness on the usually rigid and stern face was a moving sight, he would have cried if he wasn't so determined not to… Perhaps if Aqua was there to tend to Richter in his place, he might have allowed himself to sob, but he couldn't afford to be sensitive and emotional now, not when Richter was depending on his strength.

Emil bit back his tears and did his best to keep a straight face, firmly resolving to stay strong. Tenderly, he slipped his hand beneath Richter's head, his velvety red hair pouring over the edge of the blades, resembling a crimson sanguinary homage. Emil shook his head, forcing the terrible image out of his mind. Why did all these images of death linger in his head? But now was not such a time to delve into that matter… Richter needed him. Lifting the half-elf's head ever-so-slightly, he tilted Richter's chin forward, offering the first gel he could pick up, not even bothering to check the type; it didn't really matter, did it? As long as Richter was able to eat it, that was all that mattered…

Richter's lips parted, even they were shaky, almost schizophrenic, as though they were struggling to perform several tasks at once. Who would have thought that it took so much effort just to open one's mouth? Emil gulped nervously, he began to worry that Richter wouldn't even be able to swallow on his own. Richter let his jaw go slack, though for him, even that felt forced. Now, Emil was trembling, what was going to happen if Richter couldn't swallow? He had no knowledge of Richter's powers, how they worked, what effects they had on his body, he had no idea what Richter was physically able to do at this point. If it took that much effort to open his mouth - a task that Emil had always thought effortless - would a reflex be any less affected?

Tremulous, Emil lifted the gel to Richter's scarcely open mouth. Pressing it up to Richter's quivering lips, Emil held his breath, apprehensive of Richter's undoubtedly arduous task of getting the pseudo-solid into his mouth through such a narrow opening. Luckily, gels were liquescent , and at the touch of the cool, gelatinous morsel, Richter instinctively began to suck on it, slowly pulling the sweet, semi-fluid substance into his mouth. It's nearly liquid constitution made it easy to fill his mouth without strain, and once he had taken in about half of the grapefruit sized gel, he pinched his lips closed around the mouthful and with some effort, managed to force the slippery food to the back of his throat. He struggled to maneuver his tongue properly; it was as though all his muscle-memory had diminished, but slowly, he was able to move the uncooperative mass of muscle into the right position. Emil was tense with anticipation, watching Richter's face contort as he struggled with his mouthful of gel. Brow furrowed with concentration, Emil watched as Richter forced his body to move the gooey blob of nutrient to the back of his mouth. Richter pressed his tongue against his palate and took a deep breath through his nose; Emil did the same, holding his breath as he carefully watched Richter's expression. Richter subconsciously clinched his eyes shut as he forced his esophagus to relax and the muscles of his tongue to move before his body finally took the cue and, with a loud gulp, he swallowed the glut of food.

Emil breathed a sigh of relief as Richter exhaled deeply, huffing for a moment at the unexpected effort his body had just confronted. It alleviated some of Emil's stress, knowing that Richter could at least swallow on his own, and after waiting a short while for Richter to recover a bit, Emil lifted the rest of the gel to Richter's lips once more.

This time, it was a bit easier on Richter, and he swallowed the second mouthful with less effort. Emil wiped the anxious sweat off his brow, pleased, as Richter seemed to stabilize. He pulled another gel from the bag and lifted it toward Richter's lips; he was glad to see the half-elf was able to fully open his mouth this time. With his body somewhat more cooperative, Richter took in the entire gel in one mouthful and swallowed it with no struggle or effort at all. A faint smile formed on Emil's face as Richter finally seemed to regain some muscle control. Apparently, Richter's body had finally decided what to do itself, and was now entirely focused on eating. His eyelids ceased being heavy and his joints loosened somewhat, he now had the strength to hold his head up on his own. After Emil had fed him the third gel, Richter was able to muster the strength that was needed to lift his hand to his mouth. He gave Emil a grateful smile, and, although his movements were still shaky, he selected a gel from his bag and gingerly lifted it to his eager maw.

Emil giggled as he watched Richter gulp down a fourth, fifth and sixth gel in the same time span it had taken him to eat the first one. He quickly set to work preparing the simplest and fastest meals he knew how to prepare for Richter; after all, those gels wouldn't last for long with an appetite like Richter's to satiate, Emil figured quantity was more important than quality at this moment.

He was right to think so, and before long, the 20 gels that had been in Richter's bag were in Richter's belly. Emil had just barely finished a pan of risotto and potatoes-au-gratin when Richter pushed himself upright with a low grunt.

"F-feeling any better, Richter?" Emil stammered, plating the cheesy rice and potatoes before hurrying them over to Richter.

"Much better, thanks…" Richter muttered, adjusting his glasses with his left hand and reaching for the plate with his right. He took in the aroma with a few quick, inconspicuous sniffs. "Mmmm… Smells good…" and without another word, he quickly began stuffing the gooey, sticky forkfuls of the cheese-coated potatoes and rice one after the other into his mouth.

Emil smiled to himself for a moment, and then realized something that made his hair stand on end and his eyes grow wide. _'Good'? Richter used an __**adjective**__ that meant something other than 'average' or 'sufficient' to describe __**my**__ cooking?!_ Emil trembled with delight; it wasn't what most people would consider praise, but coming from Richter, it was essentially the equivalent of a normal person saying "By the power of Martel, that has got to be the best thing I've ever tasted!" Emil was beaming as he rushed back to the fireside. He had decided right then and there that he was going to prepare all his best recipes and see what kind of response they would elicit. Just as Richter polished off the plateful of starchy comestibles, Emil was eagerly offering him a wide variety of sushi and sashimi*: Onigiri*, Maki-zushi*, Nigiri-zushi*, and even Gunkanmaki*, complete with soy sauce, wasabi and pickled ginger. Richter blinked with surprise, momentarily startled by Emil's overbearingly fervent submission, but all the questions as to _why_ Emil was suddenly so zealous were quickly erased from Richter's mind when his stomach gave a loud reminder that he was, in fact, still quite famished.

He gratefully received the plateful of edibles and commenced with this second course, and Emil was overjoyed to hear Richter subconsciously grunt with approval with each little bite.

"So, umm… D-do you… do you like the food?" Emil blushed slightly as he forced the question out rather quickly. Richter's mouth was too full to answer, but Emil was gratified beyond words at just the enthusiastic nod and throaty sound of affirmation. Wait… _Enthusiastic_? Richter was capable of being _enthusiastic_? Emil was starting to think that he and Richter really _could_ be friends. Emil was beyond excited now, a nice change since he was usually trembling with anxiety or fear, and he nearly fell over more than once as he rushed around preparing more and more complex dishes for Richter.

All the while, Richter was eagerly awaiting each serving that Emil brought, regardless of what it was. It might have just been because he was hungry or exhausted or a combination of the two, but whatever it was, somehow Richter felt… _relaxed_ for the first time in ages. He felt like all his problems were insignificant, the only things that mattered now were the warmth of the fire and the flavor of the food… He had forgotten the pain in his arm, though a twinge would interrupt him briefly if he moved wrong, and for a while, he was completely at peace. Emil had always been a good cook, but for the first time, Richter really noticed how well balanced the flavor was, the texture, the aroma, every inconspicuous detail. Food had never tasted so good; he couldn't remember the last time he had allowed himself to eat so much… For the most part, Richter had viewed eating as nothing more than a necessity to live. Ever since Aster had died, he had pretty much lost all enjoyment, especially in mundane things. Food was merely something to keep his body running, like wood for a fire, and he only ever ate what was necessary to keep his body running smoothly. But now, Richter seemed to reawaken to the concept of pleasure, and slowly but surely, his enjoyment for indulgence in food was reborn.

After about the ninth or tenth course, (Richter had stopped counting and Emil hadn't really kept track), Richter was finally starting to feel full. He leaned back once more and, without even thinking, folded his arms over his middle. He was a bit startled when he felt an unusual mass that had never existed before and immediately looked down. He blushed slightly as he realized what it was. His abdomen had become noticeably distended, and he was more than a little embarrassed at his obvious over-indulgence. He shrugged after a moment, supposing that there was nothing he could do about it now, and was just about to doze off when he felt like he was being watched. He peeled one eye open and was nearly startled out of his skin when he was greeted by one of Emil's big, green eyes, mere inches from his face.

"Oh…" Emil blinked at Richter, "Are you full now?" Richter looked away and tried not to blush.

"Uhh, yeah… I'm sorry about that… I shouldn't have let myself eat quite so much…" He mumbled, feeling rather self-conscious. Emil just laughed.

"Oh, well… I didn't mean it like that! I actually thought you'd want to eat more… What a shame…" Richter looked at Emil with puzzlement. _'More…?' 'Shame…?' What is he talking about?_ The half-elf sat up and watched Emil cross the cave, back to where he was cooking before, and followed his return with wide eyes and gaping mouth as Emil brought back a rather large slice of cake. "Look's like _I'll_ just have to eat this cake all by myself then…" Richter tried not to make any sort of gesture to reveal how much he really _did_ want to eat more, especially if it was cake, but apparently, Emil correctly read Richter's wide eyed, unwavering stare as an expression of suppressed desire, and Emil more than happily handed the slice to Richter. "Ha, I _knew_ you wanted it…" Emil giggled as Richter pined over the moist, chocolaty morsel. He was at the horns of a dilemma, and he fought with logic and instinct for a long moment. _I've already eaten too much_, he thought, _but, the cake smells so good, and Emil already went through all the trouble of making it… but no, I really mustn't, I have to control myself… although it's not like it'd do any harm to just eat one slice… no, no, I really shouldn't, I can't just carry out every whim and desire that springs to mind…_ and just when Richter had finally set his mind to refusing to let himself give in to his self-proclaimed 'foolish instinct', his stomach gave a low grumble that he simply couldn't ignore. Logic was outdone by instinct. Without even thinking, Richter bolted down the slice of cake in one giant mouthful.

Before he had time to regret it, and curse himself for again loosing his composure, he felt additional weight added to his recently empty plate. He glanced up to see another tempting slice of cake had appeared on his plate, and Emil was licking a bit of frosting off of his fingers as he set the knife he was holding onto a large round plate right beside the rest of the massive chocolate dessert. Emil smiled innocently, as though he had nothing to do with the sudden appearance of the cake on Richter's plate, and Richter, again overpowered by instinct, proceeded to gulp down the second slice. Two slices became three, then four, then six, and then before Richter even knew what had happened, the entire cake was gone. Breathing deeply, Richter thwumped down against the makeshift recliner one last time, wholly and happily full and content. Before Emil had the chance to ask if Richter enjoyed the meal, he was fast asleep. Emil shrugged, deciding that the question was pointless anyway, Richter had obviously enjoyed the meal, and he felt foolish for trying to win more praise than was owed.

For a while, Emil just sat and watched Richter sleeping there, the warm firelight beckoning him to a drowsy state as well. He watched Richter's chest rise and fall with each breath and he watched Richter's eyes dance madly beneath his eyelids as he dreamed. Mostly, however, Emil found it impossible to look away from the fleshy mound just below Richter's pectorals. He thought back to when he had been inside of Richter, trying to imagine just how big Richter's stomach must have been while he was inside of it. He suddenly missed being wrapped in a warm, squishy blanket and hearing the beating of Richter's heart and wished to himself that he could once again be curled up inside of Richter's belly. He decided that he should just forget about it ever happening again… after all, Richter had only done it because it was an emergency… and after seeing the effects it had on his body, Emil thought for certain that Richter wouldn't try something like that again.

Emil sighed and lay down beside Richter. He stared up at the half-elf's face, peaceful and calm, red hair spilling over his shoulder and dangling just in front of Emil's nose. He reached out and fondled a strand of it, admiring the sheen in the flickering firelight. His eyes slowly drifted to Richter's chest, and were thusly drawn again to his protruding stomach. Emil was struck with the sudden, undeniable urge to touch it, for reasons he couldn't explain. Without a thought, he extended his arm, delicate fingers poised at the ready and, being careful not to wake Richter, he gave the half-elf's belly a gentle prod. Emil watched, mesmerized as the slight touch created ripples across the surface of Richter's plump belly. Richter did not stir from his slumber, so Emil edged closer, placing his whole hand on the massive bulge. It was warm from both the extra blood flow and the heat of the fire, and created a soft, welcoming cushion where Emil gratefully nestled his head. With his ear pressed close against Richter's engorged belly, Emil could hear the soft gurgling of Richter's churning stomach as it worked to break down his large meal.

Emil snuggled close against the half-elf, petting Richter's overstuffed middle affectionately. He closed his eyes and listened to the soothing crackling of the fire and the quiet sloshing of Richter's belly before he too drifted to sleep. Once he was undeniably snoozing, Aqua made herself visible. She had been watching the whole time from a distant corner of the cave, determined to see just what exactly it was that Richter saw in Emil, why he cared for him so. She had gotten what she was looking for, reason to keep her promise to Richter. She gently floated down beside her beloved Richter and his beloved Emil. She placed her delicate hand on Emil's head, stroking the blond's hair gently. "I guess… I guess you're not such a bad kid after all…" she whispered. "You took good care of Master Richter… thanks…" She disappeared only to reappear on Richter's opposite side, lying down on the soft, cushy belly as well. "And I guess you were right to trust him, Master Richter… I think… I just might let him live…" She closed her ocean-blue eyes and fell into peaceful rest with the two males… The three slept together for a long while, but it seemed all too short when they parted again. The events after their waking were awkward and uneventful, each left alone with their respective thoughts, embarrassed for their own private reasons as they prepared to separate again. Their journey out of the cave, through the forest and field and all the way back to where Emil had left Marta and Tenebrae was spent in relative silence. They all tried to push what had happened from their minds, convinced that such events were better left alone, the memories left to decay, never revisited, as such events were unlikely to take place ever again…

But the three of them never forgot that experience… And they were quite wrong in thinking that it would be the last time such scenarios would occur.

* * *

**Things that needed clarification:**

**Yromem**** Stone** - Not an actual item in the game. "Yromem" is the word "Memory" spelled backwards.

**... for the second time...** - I decided that, after the events of ShadowedLightning's story that Richter keeps Emil inside him a while longer, until he's had a chance to talk to Aqua and calm her down. While waiting for this to happen, Emil falls asleep again.

**cap-a-pie** - It means "head-to-toe". I read it in Shakespeare's "Hamlet", and it sounded good, so I figured I'd use it.

**sashimi** - While most westerners confuse this with sushi, they are, in fact, two very different dishes. Sushi always involves rice, and sashimi never does. Sashimi is basically sliced fish, usually of the sort you will likely be having with your meal. It's a sampling platter of sorts. If you'd like to think of it as an "appetizer", that's an appropriate term.

**Onigiri** - Though this is technically neither sushi, nor sashimi, it fits with the group of "typical Japanese" dishes. Onigiri is what laymen/westerners call a "rice ball", and is usually sticky white rice shaped into a triangle shape and wrapped with a bit of nori[a]

**nori** - Seaweed, typically the roasted and salted variety. For the purposes of my story, assume it's the roasted salted kind.

**Maki-zushi** - Laymen/westerners likely know it as a "California Roll". California rolls are actually a specific type of Maki-zushi which is made with crab and avocado, but that's the general mental image you should have. Westerners market a lot of Maki-zushi under the misnomer of California roll. Maki-zushi is a rolled sushi that comes in two varieties. A regular roll is Maki-zushi assembled with the nori on the outside, the rice as the middle layer, and the neta[b], fish and/or julienne vegetables as the innermost layer. The reverse roll is assembled almost in reverse of that. The rice is the outermost layer (usually rolled in sesame seeds to prevent the rice from sticking to the other pieces of the roll, chopsticks, etc.) the nori is the middle layer, and the neta is still in the center. For the purposes of my story, assume Emil has made both varieties, with a variety of neta.

**neta** - "Topping" or "Filling". Neta refers to the fish or vegetable that is featured in a particular sushi. The neta in eel sushi would be eel. The neta of a typical California roll would be crab meat (usually fake crab) and avocado.

**Nigiri-zushi** - This is typically the kind of sushi one might find in a variety pack: the long rectangle of rice with a shrimp laying flat across the top. Nigiri-zushi consists of a block of rice topped with neta. Sometimes, a piece of nori will be used to hold the neta on the rice. Neta for nigiri-zushi is almost always fish. For the purposes of my story, assume Emil made all the popular kinds: Shiro-maguro (fatty tuna), Sake (salmon), Hamachi (yellowtail), Kurodai (snapper), Tako (octopus), and Ika (squid); along with a few exotic kinds: Tamago (sweet egg), Unagi (eel), Uni (sea urchin), and Kani (crab).

**Gunkanmaki** - a kind of nigiri-zushi known as the "warship roll". Gunkanmaki typically comes in a boat shape with a rice boarder and neta (usually fish) surrounding a softer sushi topping like Umi (urchin), Natto (a fermented soybean paste that, according to most westerners [including myself], has a texture comparable to a thick, sticky mucus. Many Japanese will agree that it's an acquired taste; most children refuse to eat it because of it's weird texture.), and I've even heard of quail eggs being a featured neta! I was going for the Umi kind here, but whatever you think Richter would enjoy is also an acceptable assumption. For more information on the sushi varieties I've mentioned, you can always start with Wikipedia. It's very informative.


	2. Intimacy

When at last he had caught up to Emil, who he was relieved to find was alone, he had nothing to say, no words to strike a conversation with… It was night in the field, (not far from where they were now, actually) when Richter reunited with Emil. He had said nothing, simply sat beside the boy and warmed himself by the fire. Emil did not utter a sound either, just stared at Richter. A meal was prepared and was consumed in silence. But in all that silence, they had been saying plenty. They were feeling each other out, familiarizing themselves with the other once more. Noting mild signals the other was giving: _Is he still comfortable around me? Yes… Does he seem in any particular rush to be somewhere, on a journey of some sort? No, not especially… Does he have some sort of business with me? It seems that way… Urgent business? No… but it seems personal…_

Little things in their posture, their expressions, behavior, told all… everything was explained without words… After all, "emotions lose some of their strength once put into words…" don't they? Something that Richter and Emil both seemed to know quite well. The meal was finished. The mood was right. "And the bagpipe didn't say no."* Wait, what?! (Sorry, I throw things in for humor at the most suspenseful parts… but really, that line makes sense in my head!)

Richter slowly edged over toward Emil, and Emil edged toward Richter as well. Contrary to expectations, Emil acted his desire first. Reaching out, he undid Richter's jacket, then his shirt. He leaned in and laid his cheek against Richter's muscular chest, and placed his hand on Richter's regrettably modest waist. (The meal had not been big, since Emil wasn't expecting company.) Richter's response was quick and effective; he needed only to take the boy in his lap, just as he had before, and ruffle his golden locks, and before you could say "Centurion Aqua" Emil had stripped himself down to his boxers. He closed his eyes with a smile and relaxed his body, a cue for Richter to begin, and Richter eagerly obliged. They had both secretly longed for this moment for a very extensive period, dreamt about it so often that it didn't really seem like it was only their second time. Richter gave Emil a few tender licks on the cheek, growing excited as Emil's mild flavor reawakened the memory of their first experience, cementing it in Richter's mind as having been more than a fantasy… It had really happened…

Emil leaned into the licks, having a similar nostalgia at the familiar sensation. Both males ached with desire, and Richter wasted no more time with foreplay. He rubbed the teen's back gently, enacting that first incident exactly as it played back in his memory, and Emil reveled in the tactile sensation as the rubs relaxed his body even further and Richter slowly drew Emil's head into his mouth. Emil tried not to laugh as Richter's tongue brushed against his face; he had more time to notice just how much it tickled, but he liked that it did. He was more prepared this time, and he didn't mind the tightness at all when Richter took his first swallow. Richter went slowly, having no need to rush, and he was fully able to enjoy Emil's taste and texture now that there were no distractions. The blond's skin was smooth and more-or-less frictionless, slipping into his mouth and down his throat with relative ease. Now, when Emil was calm and willing, the process was much more enjoyable. He could feel the boy nuzzling the lining of his throat, and he found that to be a much more pleasant sensation than the jerky trembling movements Emil had made on his first trip down. Richter was eager to finish the meal and enjoy delightful, bloated fullness as soon as possible, but at the same time, he wanted to savor every inch of Emil, and he found himself fighting the urge to swallow in order to suck on the little human's torso for as long as he could. Richter's stomach, however - brainless structure that it was - did not allow him to enjoy many of these long pauses; its urge to be full forced him to swallow again and again, regardless of what he consciously wanted.

When Emil's head finally squished into Richter's stomach, the half-elf could not suppress a soft moan. Now that he was not in any sort of rush, Richter had more time to think about exactly what he was doing, and the thoughts made him blush. His face heated up so much, in fact, that his glasses began to cloud up, until they were almost opaque. He was _actually_ putting someone inside his body, he was actually using powers he never thought he'd use for something _pleasant,_ and the pleasure was actually so intense that it made him sweat. It just felt too good, too amazing, and Richter was suddenly aware that this was something he wouldn't be able to give up. But these thoughts were soon blurred out by the overwhelming instinct to swallow, an instinct that he promptly obeyed. He sucked and he gulped and he rubbed and he licked until, at last, Emil's wiggling feet passed down his throat and were packed inside his belly with the rest of the blond. Suddenly, it seemed the process was over far too quickly; they were both a little disappointed at the perceived brevity of their pleasure when Emil all too soon found himself curled in Richter's belly, and Richter found the boy's flavor fading from his palate just as quickly. In reality, the process had lasted nearly twice as long as the first time, but as they say "time flies when you're having fun". Still, such disappointment was short-lived, and their pleasure returned when they took advantage of other benefits to their positions.

Richter lay back, his stuffed belly happily massaging the blond inside it, and he relished the sensation as he pet the taught skin that enveloped Emil's body. It was exactly as he remembered and repeatedly reconstructed in his mind, only this time, there was no urgency, no hurry to shelter the boy from any danger, no stress… He was able to fully enjoy the little details he had missed the first time around. There was no awkward atmosphere, no questioning to confirm the other's comfort, no need to assure the other's psychological welfare, they were both well adjusted to the idea now, and were left with only their unfettered bliss. Emil felt the touch he had been expecting once he had settled inside of Richter's stomach. He pressed against the somatic wall and followed the touches, giggling as his body became coated in Richter's secretions, the viscous mucous that slathered the stomach's lining was slicking his body, leaving him warm and slippery from his hair down to his toes. Richter made things a little more interesting as he traced Emil's outline with his fingers, coming up with a sort of game, he closed his eyes and focused only on what he felt, and just from the sensation, tried to pinpoint each piece of Emil. Almost always, he knew where the head was, it was easy to identify by the slight tickle he felt as Emil's damp hair slid across his insides. The hips, too, were easy as the fabric of the boy's boxers dragged slowly along the mucous membrane. Hands were easier to identify than feet, and the shoulders almost always accompanied the head as Emil wriggled against him, but everything else was nigh impossible to get right. Still, that was the fun of it, it forced Richter to concentrate only on his middle, just the pleasant writhing that stimulated him in ways he had never imagined. Even if he couldn't identify just what it was that had made him tingle with pleasure, it didn't matter, just as long as it kept happening.

Emil rubbed against Richter's supple, stretchable stomach just as he had the first time, and delighted in Richter's reaction as he allowed himself an unrestrained moan of pleasure. It excited Emil who went about playing a little game of his own, seeing how many ways he could move that would make Richter vocalize in such a way. He pushed and squirmed and stretched in every way he could think of and in every orientation he could come up with. He figured out several points of interest that elicited a rather cute sound from Richter when rubbed a certain way and quite a few that made Richter squirm and moan with satisfaction. But the most delightful discovery of all was a tiny, secret spot that, when rubbed _just right_, caused Richter to writhe, enraptured, crying out in ecstasy as his body trembled with sheer, overwhelming bliss.

Emil smiled, enjoying his position of power. Being trapped inside another's body may not sound like a position of power to most people, but to Emil there was never a moment where he felt more in control. He felt a certain pride and satisfaction that his touch was able to bring Richter such exquisite rapture. That spot, the one only _he_ knew of, the little fold near the pyloric sphincter… that was his weapon. Yes… a weapon he would use to defeat the part of Richter that denied the half-elf happiness… That was his power, that was his talent, that was his boon… It excited him to be able to force that moan from the erstwhile silent half-elf, and Emil made a point of striking that special spot frequently as he wriggled to and fro against the other stimulating points he had discovered.

Richter, meanwhile, was completely incapacitated, only able to move in short, random bursts, motion that was controlled by some other force that he had neither the ability nor desire to dominate. He found himself only able to drag his hands across his distended midsection, left at the mercy of the teen within, who showed no signs of stopping this exquisite torture. He shivered with the same forms of excitement that Emil had encountered, moaning through clenched teeth as he tried his best to contain them. The part of him that once would have rejected this was long gone, and he no longer cared about propriety or dignity; all that mattered to him was riding the waves of pleasure as far as they would take him. His mind was left vacant to allow this new pleasure center full dominion of his thoughts and his motions.

The sensations for both compiled exponentially, spurring their bliss until it reached unbearable levels. Eventually, the warmth was too much for Emil, and the fullness was too much for Richter. Both were made to yawn by their respective drowse-inducing forces, and eventually, both's frantic stroking eased to a slow, gentle pace. "Mmmmm... so damn _good_..." Richter muttered, stifling a burp. Emil smiled and rubbed the half-elf's stomach just a little harder, earning another one of those pleased moans. The fire had died down to naught but embers and an ambitious, flickering flame which refused to die out, even as the wind blew ashes on top of the tiny bit of glowing wood that still did it's damnedest to keep burning. Richter watched it through tired, half-hooded eyes as he made himself more comfortable, being extra careful not to jostle his Emil-bulge. He gathered up Emil's scattered clothes into a neat bundle, using it as a make-shift pillow, just as he had before… Emil's clothes really did make the perfect cushion, their softness unparalleled… well, except perhaps for the cushion Emil was using… Richter lay down upon the welcoming, black-and-blue, velvety pile as he slowly eased onto his side. Once he had settled down, Emil repositioned himself inside Richter, nuzzling into the silky lining of the redhead's belly, curled into a loose fetal position as the muscles around him rocked him gently back and forth.

Richter felt the subtle movement and blushed, placing a hand over his prominent and overstuffed gut as a thin, affectionate smile creased his lips. He pet the taught skin and felt the boy rub against his hand. His eyes glistened in the dying firelight as he parted his lips to speak. In a soft melodic tone, he whispered to Emil. "Courage really _is_ the magic that turns dreams into reality, isn't it?" He closed his eyes and gave his belly one final pat before allowing drowsiness to take hold. He felt Emil give a deep, satisfied sigh as he yawned in response.

"Yeah… It sure is, Richter…" They were both fast asleep before the last spark of their fire died out just five seconds later…

Back in the present, Richter stirred, having fallen asleep while daydreaming. Emil dozed by his side, still grasping his hand firmly. Richter smiled and crawled closer to Emil, being careful not to wake him. The half-elf wrapped an arm around the blond pulling him into his lap, cradling the boy gently in his arms. A faint trace of a blush brightened the redhead's face and he nuzzled Emil's cheek with his own. The boy stirred a bit in his sleep, rubbing against Richter's chest, and the redhead couldn't help but laugh. He parted the blond's hair to the side, planting a tender kiss on the boy's forehead. For a while, he watched Emil sleep in his arms, wondering what kinds of dreams he might be having as the young male twitched a bit, the muscles of his body responding to the illusions in his dreams. He had never resembled Aster more… But Aster was never coming back, and Richter knew that Emil would never replace Aster. Even if he could sacrifice what he had with Emil to bring Aster back, Richter didn't think he could do that either.

After all, what he had with Aster was an unforgettable friendship, even love. But what he had with Emil was much more precious to him. The boy had reminded him what it really meant to live, and the differences between Aster and Emil were what Richter found so alluring about his new partner. The new relationship he had built with the boy… that was not something Richter was willing to sacrifice now… And as Emil, in subconscious motion, wrapped his arms around Richter, the redhead lay down again in the sweet-smelling grass and cuddled the little human as he eased back into a peaceful slumber. Both were contented to spend that early morning reminiscing, and they both unwittingly ended up entwined in the same daydream-turned-dream just as they were entwined in each other's arms.

Many times since their reunion, Richter had instigated little, episodic rendezvouses such as those, and Emil always obliged. Eventually, the two became inseparable traveling companions. Within a half-year, they were already far beyond the awkwardness of their relationship. Emil's habitual nervous stuttering had dissipated, and Richter had become much more open and loquacious. It wasn't uncommon for them to set out on long quests together for no other reason than to relive their nostalgic past travels. More often than not, Richter and Emil would engage in similar sensual activities two or three times a week. Sometimes, Emil would prepare a vast array of food for Richter, sometimes he _was_ food for Richter… However, it wasn't long before Emil became curious about Richter's powers, even a bit jealous of the man's inexplicable talent for doing the impossible, and soon, Emil couldn't contain his curiosity anymore. After a particularly large feast one night, Emil took the opportunity to confront Richter while he was feeling the most comfortable.

"Richter… How exactly are you able to do… well, all that stuff you can do?" Richter responded with genuine confusion and a cocked eyebrow, so Emil elaborated rather hurriedly, embarrassment obvious in his flushed cheeks. "I mean, how is it that you can eat like you do? I mean… it's _sooooo_ much! Is that a half-elf thing? Or is that something only you know how to do?" Emil poked the embers of their fire with the tip of a sinewy branch, succeeding in doing nothing except stirring up some ash and sparks. Richter thought for a moment, licking the pad of his thumb, then his index finger, as he enjoyed the last taste of the meal that had lingered there.

"Well, to be honest… I'm not really sure, myself." Though that "honest" ought to have had a "dis-" in front of it; Richter's past was really not something he enjoyed discussing… much of it was painful and he hated reminiscing about such things. It wasn't that important, was it? Most of what he would have said to explain it would have been rather convoluted and unnecessary; besides, there was something else on his mind… He unbuttoned his Sea Fire cloak and the white camise beneath it, exposing his pudge in the warm summer air, he knew Emil liked that. Even though he was full, there was a different hunger he wanted to satisfy, and he tempted Emil to his side as he pat the engorged mass tenderly. Emil crept over to the half-elf and leaned against his broad shoulders.

"That's a little disappointing…" he muttered. It knocked Richter out of his mood rather quickly to see Emil's curiosity die out. He had hoped perhaps that the boy might list off a few theories, one of which might be a reasonable explanation that Richter could fib with or perhaps he could tease Emil with silence and indefinite answers, letting him guess undeterminably as a sort of playful banter.

"Hey, now… What's the matter with you all of a sudden, Emil? Do you really want to know that badly?" He caressed the blond's cheek tenderly.

"Of course! I wouldn't have asked otherwise!" Emil abruptly blurted out. The unusual mood swing told Richter that the topic was a rather sensitive one to the boy and that he was getting defensive about it…

_He must be embarrassed about why he's so interested… I need to be prudent here if I want to get anywhere in this conversation without upsetting him…_ Richter thought long and hard about what he should say, not knowing if he should just make something up or not. If he only knew why Emil was so curious, he might have been able to come up with a reasonable justification for his powers that would have sated the boy's curiosity, but he didn't want to come up with something that might provoke more questions or lead the boy to false assumptions that he couldn't prove true later. Remembering Occam's Razor*, he decided that the simplest explanation would be best, it would provoke fewer questions, allow him to leave out painful details, and would hopefully still satisfy Emil.

"Well, this power… this curse, or gift, or what ever you'd like to call it… It's something I've lived with for a very long time. To my knowledge, I'm the only person who can do what I can do. I've never heard of anyone else who can … _eat_ like this or do anything similar… It's just… I-I don't know anymore than that, okay?!" Richter turned from Emil, frustrated. He was a poor liar, and despite being used to leaving out crucial details, he found it difficult to lie to Emil.

Emil mistook the gesture as offense and quickly apologized. Richter, as always, chided Emil for apologizing needlessly and was quick to apologize for his own harshness toward the boy. Emil just nodded and sighed.

"Why do you care so much about it, anyway?" Richter was fed up with the indirect conversation they had been having, and the question came off a little too blunt. But before he could amend the question with a gentler one, Emil shyly answered.

"It's just that… well, I… I just… I wanted to know if other people could do it, too… I wanted… to know if people like me could…"

And suddenly, Richter understood. "You mean you wanted to know if there was a way that _you_ could do it, too…" Emil blushed but nodded. The disappointment was apparent in Emil's expression, his down-turned face and sullen eyes radiated Emil's inner feelings. Richter suddenly felt guilty for not telling the boy the whole truth, but he didn't think revealing the entire story would make Emil feel any better either. Richter shrugged and pulled a flask from his bag, taking a draught of the contents. "Well, I'm sorry to say that I don't think there's a way to do that…" He took another drink from the flask and passed it to Emil, who was more than a little surprised by the gesture. A few sniffs when Richter first uncorked it had indicated that its contents were alcohol, its bitter fermented odor and odd honey-like undertones had told him it was probably a mead of some sort. Now that it was right beneath his nose, the smell was a bit nauseating, and Emil had to stifle a disgusted moan. Richter laughed a little, understanding the boy's reluctance.

"I didn't hand it to you so you could sniff it, you know? Be a man, take a swig." Richter forced the bottle up against the blond's lips. Emil, obviously, pulled away from Richter, pressing his lips tightly together to prevent himself from drinking any of the liquor.

"Richter! Are you nuts?!" He gasped after he finally seceded from Richter's advance.

"What? It's just a little booze to cheer you up. I'm not trying to poison you or anything." Richter feigned innocence, though his cunning was betrayed by the sly glint in his emerald irises. He knew very well why he was trying to inebriate Emil, though his intentions were not entirely malicious and self-centered. He was indeed trying to cheer the teen up, but he figured if it made Emil a little "easier to persuade", that was a nice bonus for him. He didn't intend to get Emil drunk, either, just a little buzzed to loosen him up. Emil shook his head insistently.

"No, Richter, I don't care why you want me to drink it! I'm not going to… I'm… not supposed to…"

"Feh… To hell with the drinking age!", Richter roared, "It's different in every town anyway! Go on, just have a sip… one _little_ sip isn't going to hurt you. See?" Richter took a gulp of the liquor from the flask; a tempting trickle of it dripped from his mouth and ran lazily down his neck as he tipped his head back for a second gulp. "There, now. I drank almost the whole thing and nothing bad happened." He shook the flask back and forth to indicate that it was nearly empty; the tinkling of the few ounces of liquid still in the container emphasized his point. "Just taste it… I taste everything _you_ make, don't I?"

"Y-you made this?" Emil sniffed at the flask's opening, seriously considering a small taste if it meant that much to Richter.

"Yeah, of course." Richer fibbed. It wasn't as if Emil had ever tasted mead before, so how would he know the difference? "I wanted your expert opinion, since you have such good taste… go on, now, have a drink."

Emil hesitated, but reluctantly pressed the flask to his lips, allowing a small drop, barely enough to taste, to enter his mouth. The bitter and pungent flavor was off-putting, and even the meager amount made Emil flinch. And yet, the piquancy intrigued him; under the overpowering dryness, there was a hint of an apple flavor, a sharp spiciness like cinnamon and cloves, a faint tartness like tangerines… Emil had never experienced such a complex taste before. Curious, Emil took another sip. Upon closer inspection, he discovered many intricate flavors were mingled in the brew. Sip after sip he noticed more and more of the subtle undertones, until at last he had finished the last of the liquor with inconspicuous disappointment. He was about to hand the flask back to Richter when he looked to find another flask was already occupying his hands.

"Well, did you like it?" Richter raised an eyebrow expectantly. Emil stifled a small burp and cleared his throat nervously.

"Umm… it was… uh… good, I guess…" He stammered.

"Good, _you guess_?!" Richter asked indignantly. "Is that it?"

"Well, I've never had it before!" Emil shouted defensively, posture rigid and anxious. "How should I know?!" He brushed the hair out of his eyes nervously.

"Here," Richter tilted the new flask toward Emil, "Try this one, then. Tell me which one's better."

He handed Emil the slick, cool flagon and gestured for him to drink. "But, Richter… this one's almost full! I can't-!"

"I never said you had to drink the whole thing, just a sip or two…" Emil gave Richter a wary look, but obliged. He had miscalculated his own self-control however, and after falling under the spell of the second sweet brew, happily finished the entire contents of the bottle. Richter had more than a little trouble getting the flask away from the blond who seemed intent on getting every last drop out of the container. He himself had finished three flasks on his own and was feeling the effects of the liquor, so he supposed the second ought to do the same for Emil. He opened another flask, pretending it was for him.

"See? You liked that one, eh?" He grinned at the teen. Emil smiled back and nodded enthusiastically. Richter acted as though he wasn't watching as he pressed the rim of the bottle to his lips and the blond licked his own, eyes filled with want as he gazed at the silver-coated decanter with obvious envy. Richter looked over oh-so-casually and "noticed" the boy's eagerness. Feigning ignorance, he gestured toward Emil with the bottle. Emil grabbed for it earnestly, chugging the contents once the bottle was in hand.

Emil hiccupped, a bit of the carbonated alcohol still tickling the back of his throat as he swallowed the last mouthful. He smiled softly and giggled a bit despite himself. Emil sniffled, and Richter noticed that the tip of Emil's nose had become red with the affect of the alcohol; he had let Emil over-do it a bit, but as long as Emil had loosened up a smidge, Richter wasn't going to complain. He discretely wrapped his broad, muscular arm around Emil's slender neck, pulling him in close, but the embrace still felt suspicious to Emil…

"R-Richter…? *hic* Um… Wha-what are you…?"

"Shh, shh… It's alright… You trust me, right Emil?" Richter's lips curled up in a coy smile, and before Emil could respond, he pressed his lips firmly against the blond's. Emil, from experience, thought perhaps Richter intended to have him for dessert, as per usual… but what an odd place to start… unless…

Emil blushed profusely when he realized Richter really _was_ kissing him. He didn't know what to think, what to do, his head was spinning, his mind went fuzzy, and Richter… Richter was… Oh, Goddess! Emil pulled away in disbelief; was Richter _really_ doing that to him? The way Richter was holding him, the way he was kissing him, the liquor… Could it be that Richter was seducing him?! Emil had never done that sort of thing before and he was nervous that Richter might not want to stop after just one chaste kiss. Emil didn't know how those sorts of things worked, what he was supposed to say and do, and the thought that he might disappoint Richter terrified him. Richter felt Emil pushing against him, struggling to escape the embrace. Confused by the teen's behavior, Richter opened his eyes, releasing his grip as Emil scrambled back a few inches, breathless.

Those big green eyes shattered his heart, and Richter immediately regretted his actions. _I over-did it… I over-did it and now he's pulling away from me. What an idiot I am… I should have known he doesn't like me that way… It was too early, too quick… Damn it…_ Emil still stared nervously at the man, trying to read his vague expression and hoping the man didn't notice his… lameness… the liquor had made him slow and he could only lay there panting as Richter knelt temptingly over him, praying that he hadn't disappointed Richter by… trying not to disappoint him. He wringed his hands anxiously, trying to come up with something to say. Richter stared deeply into Emil's eyes, now admonishing himself for the devilish plan he had almost carried out. _This was wrong…_, he thought, _I got him drunk, so I could do unspeakable things to him! He'd never trust me again if I went through with it…_

He blushed, turning away from Emil, then stood; walking over to his things, he took another flask and downed its contents in a few heavy swallows. He sighed, scolding himself for not realizing that it had been a bad idea from the very start. He gulped down another flask of mead, rubbing his temples with his free hand. _Why did I ever think this was a good idea? The boy's too innocent, I should have known he wasn't ready for this sort of thing; and even if he was, he wouldn't want our first time together to be tainted with liquor. But… He_ does_ think of me "that way"… right? Otherwise, he wouldn't have let me do all of those things… unless he's just been too shy to speak up… Oh, what am I thinking?! Even if he _does_ like me that way and even if he _does_ want this, it's all wrong! It's like he's not really there if I do it like this! Drunk isn't how I wanted it! I'm just a loathsome, selfish, hedonist taking advantage of him like a drunken floozy… What the _hell_ is wrong with me?!_ He finished yet another bottle of mead and hiccupped hoarsely as he threw the empty flagon to the ground.

He cradled his head in his hands and sighed, letting his rouge hair shroud his face. All this time, Emil had been watching him, slowly trying to figure him out. _First, he gets me to drink, and then he kisses me… He pulled me close, he looked at me so intensely… and now he's… he's… just sulking… Did I do something wrong again…? I-I probably offended him… by not letting him kiss me… that's all he wanted… right?_ Emil sat up slowly, still regrettably naïve and innocent, unable to understand exactly what Richter had wanted despite those few intermitted bouts of pseudo-coitus when Emil had willingly allowed Richter to swallow him. The thought just somehow never registered in Emil's mind that Richter might want to try it the old-fashioned way. It could be attributed to the fact that the liquor had retarded his logic beyond its usual slowness, but it was still rather sad that the boy couldn't piece it all together. He approached Richter, sitting beside him and leaning down until he could see the half-elf's face through the strands of red hair and interlocked fingers.

He tapped Richter on the back, but aroused no response. He cleared his throat, and when Richter still didn't look up at him, he began to speak. "Hey, um, R-Richter? I'm-I'm sorry if I did something to upset you… I just… I didn't know what to do so I-"

"Quit apologizing. It's not your fault… you didn't upset me…" Richter groaned, slumping even more as he let his limbs go limp. "…No, it's me… It's what _I've_ done wrong…" Emil squinted at him, not fully understanding what he meant. He didn't think Richter had done anything wrong at all… a bit strange perhaps, but not wrong. Richter's heart ached as he looked into those innocent eyes, and it tore him apart to watch the boy pity him so. "I'm… I'm sorry…" He pulled away from Emil, staggering to his feet. He took a few wobbly steps, obviously drunk off his ass, though he tried to pretend otherwise. He stumbled, and Emil - for once in his life acting in a timely manner - jumped immediately to his feet; and, though he lacked the coordination for it, tried to keep Richter upright. Being as heavy as he was and already well off balance, Emil's support didn't help much, and Richter still ended up tumbling to the ground, pulling Emil down with him.

Richter lay spread out on the grass where he'd fallen and Emil instinctively apologized as he landed with a thud on top of the half-elf. A swarm of fireflies, which were roused from their sleep when the males first tumbled into the weeds, took flight as Richter blushed, not even bothering to tell Emil his apology was once again unnecessary. Emil breathed a sigh as he admired the glowing insects' beauty. He turned to Richter to express his appreciation for the lovely display of nature only to discover that the half-elf was sobbing, head turned to the side, eyes dark and wet, hiding his tears though his brow was knitted in an expression of suppressed sorrow and he chewed his lower lip in a futile attempt to keep it from trembling*.

"R-Richter?!" Emil started as he took in the shocking image. Richter cringed as he felt Emil's delicate touch on his cheek, tilting his face, and he was ashamed by his lack of control even now, wanting to sink into the ground and disappear rather than be seen in such a sorry state. Emil shuddered as he took in the full view of Richter's face, contorted by the sobs, and he felt himself getting choked up as well. Richter's chest spasmodically rose and fell as he tried to control his breathing.

"Emil… I'm so, so sorry…" He wiped the tears from his cheeks and eyes, wishing he could wipe himself out just as easily.

"Sorry? For what?" Emil slid off of Richter, allowing the half-elf to sit upright.

"I… I _lied_ to you, Emil… I didn't make that mead… I've never made mead in my life…"

"Wha…? I-I'm not sure I understand… i-is that such a terrible thing to tell a lie? It wasn't right, and I'm a little shocked that you'd do something like that, but I'm not mad at you Richter… so why are you _this_ upset about it?"

"Because of the reason _why_ I lied… I told you I made it so you would drink it, but I only wanted you to drink it because I thought if you did, I could get you to have sex with me!" Richter drew his arms and legs close to his body, sobbing into his hands as he hugged his knees against his stomach.

"**You whaaaaaaat?!**" Emil jumped back, completely taken by surprise.

"I know…" Richter groaned, "I'm a terrible person." Emil stared at the redhead as he let the thought sink in. He had never thought Richter felt that way about him. He knew Richter liked him a lot, but he never thought Richter was at that stage in their relationship. He knew _he_ liked Richter "that way", but he hadn't noticed Richter make any signals of the same sort of affection. He had always thought that Richter enjoyed having him around because he liked his cooking, he'd always thought Richter enjoyed eating him because he made Richter's stomach feel good, but it had never crossed Emil's mind that all this time, Richter had actually been turned on by all of it. He felt stupid for not having noticed before, but looking back, it all made perfect sense. The way Richter had always protected him, all the times he had gone out of his way to help Emil, how he had fawned over him, doted on him, even given him that stone that time Aqua tried to kill him… it wasn't just because Richter liked him… it was because he _loved_ him. And he wanted to express that love in the most intimate way possible now…

Emil turned bright red as he crawled over to Richter, rousing the fireflies anew as he rustled the grass around them. Hearing the noise, Richter shyly looked up only to have Emil throw his arms around him and lock his quivering lips with the redhead's. Richter was knocked backward by the force of the embrace and he uttered some muffled sound of shock as he once again wound up on his back. Emil clambered on top of him and Richter wept even harder at the realization that Emil was accepting him anyway, despite his deceit. He was overwhelmed by the boy's forgiveness, and before he could stop himself, he found himself in a tangled embrace with the teen as their passionate kiss continued. The chaste kisses quickly escalated to more heated forms and before long their tongues were darting into each other's mouths and all hell just broke loose.

**Due to the mysterious and powerful forces of censorship, part of this story seems to have disappeared.**

**Passion ensued, and when it was finally over, both males were rendered breathless.** Emil **captured the redhead's lips with his own** as he expressed his approval for a wonderful performance. This was Emil's first time ever doing that with a partner… It was the most amazing thing that had ever happened to him. Richter was the same way, and he took pleasure in knowing that he had given Emil as satisfying an experience as Emil had given him. Eventually, their hearts slowed back to their normal rhythm and their breathing followed suit.**They lay side by side in the lush grass**, sighing as the cool air swept over them. **Richter** smiled, filled to bursting with happiness, and he stretched lazily in the grass. Emil curled up beside him, resting his head on Richter's chest as he massaged the half-elf's belly. Richter wrapped one arm around the boy and held him close as he folded the other arm under his head, gazing up at the night sky.

The stars that night were beautiful, and every so often, a firefly or two would rest on one of their shoulders or knees before catching the next passing wind. It was like the whole world had just stopped around them. After a while, Emil began to shiver despite Richter's warm embrace. They gathered their things and settled back next to the fire. After Richter insisted, Emil put on his white camise. "It's what couples do." Richter said bluntly, "And I'm _not_ lying about that." Emil had laughed. Richter clothed himself in the remaining articles of his usual outfit, minus the usual gold-and-red bolo tie which had likely disappeared somewhere in the grass. He lifted the torn remnants of Emil's shirt, simpering as he rather wished he had possessed a _little_ more self-control and not rendered it nothing more than a broad piece of blue cloth with two straps at either edge. He held it out toward Emil, turning red as he apologized and promised to make suitable repairs. Emil burst out laughing, teasing Richter for becoming the one who was constantly apologizing needlessly; Richter laughed too.

For a moment, Emil was a bit surprised; Richter had never laughed before...* There was a beauty in the deep monotone of the laughter, like the tolling of a bell. Richter noticed Emil's surprised silence, and paused to inquire why.

"Is something the matter, Emil? You got really quiet all of a sudden."

"Oh, no… It's nothing… It's just… That was the first time you've ever laughed."

"Huh, I suppose it is!" Richter chuckled. "I guess I just haven't had very much to laugh about before. Now that you mention it… it's kind of… nice… being able to laugh again." He smiled whimsically, turning from Emil to pick up the boy's item case. He opened it to pack Emil's torn shirt inside when a faint glow from inside the bag caught his attention. He rummaged around, past a few gels and some war trophies, until his hand brushed something cool and smooth. He lifted the object from the bottom of the bag and turned it over in his palm. His eyes widened as he recognized the glowing stone; it was the Yromem Stone, the stone he had given to Emil a while back… He couldn't believe his eyes.

"Emil… Y-you _kept_ this stone all this time?" Emil looked up with a charming smile.

"Yeah, of course! I never let it out of my sight. You gave it to me so… it's been a very special memento to me…" Emil blushed, even though he really had no reason to anymore.

"Well then… It appears as though I have lied to you again…" Richter's expression became serious, contemplative, but Emil misinterpreted the man's meaning, thinking that Richter was referring to what he had said the day he had given Emil the stone.

"I… I understand… It was yours to begin with, anyway. You can have it back. I don't mind…"

"What the hell do you mean? I have no need for this stone anymore… I gave it to you so you could keep it; I'm not the kind to renege on something like that."

"Oh! Well what did you mean when you said you lied, then? And… by the way… what _did_ you want this stone for anyway? And…"

"Whoa, whoa… slow down, kid. One question at a time. Although, those two are rather connected. Let's go chronologically, shall we?" Richter tucked Emil's shirt into his bag and set it at his feet as he sat beside the boy. He turned the smooth oval stone over and over in his hand as he spoke. "This is called an Yromem Stone… there are very few of them in the world. It's estimated that there are about three or four… You see, back during the Great Kharlan War that split the world in two, there were an estimated 200 major battles, but only 4 resulted in tremendous bloodshed… it is said that at the places where those four battles took place one of these stones was created by the intense surge of mana that was released when so many people were killed. However, the fourth battle had the greatest amount of bloodshed; it was the last battle before the world split. Therefore, it's impossible to know what was actually created with all the excess mana. Many legends have said that it was that intense burst of mana that allowed the world to split, others say an incredibly powerful Yromem Stone was created, and to this day I still don't know which of the legends are true."

Emil cocked his head to the side, a bit confused by the strange story, and what exactly it had to do with any of his questions. Richter noticed the boy's confusion and, skipping the history lesson, continued to explain the mysterious stone. "Now, after sifting through many obscure manuscripts I deciphered a few clues as to where the location of one of these stones was, the one we have here right now. Truth be told, I tried to get to it without your help first… but I couldn't get beyond a certain point in those caves… I'm sorry to say, but my first intention was to use you to reach the stone… Only now do I realize the real reason we were able to pass beyond the seal… I'm very glad now, knowing there was more to you than just Ratatosk. But when I had asked you, I really only intended to use your powers to get beyond the barriers in my way… I thought that as a Knight of Ratatosk, your presence could dispel the magical fields around those barriers… Even though I hadn't known you were Ratatosk at the time, I thought for sure that his power would corrupt you if you continued to be a Knight of Ratatosk… but when we finally reached our goal… I… I had come to realize… there was something more to you… I thought that if I gave you a chance, maybe things would work out differently. I'm so glad they did…"

"That still doesn't answer any of my questions, Richter… What exactly were you going to use the stone for?"

"Be patient… I'm getting there… you see the writing there on the stone?" Richter pointed out a series of runes on the surface of the stone, so small that you would never notice them if you weren't looking for them. "It says here that 'those who hold the power of this stone within them can become a mirror to their world.' Several translations have been made, but the closest meaning is that those who have this stone can mimic other people's powers… That's why I originally wanted it… to match the powers of Ratatosk… but after traveling with you, I couldn't bear the thought of using such brutal magic against you if I ever had to fight you in the end. So I gave it to you… You seemed to want it so badly and I figured that the stone would be safe with you, maybe even be of use to you… To be honest, I nearly died when I found out you were Ratatosk -or more correctly, that you were a part of Ratatosk. When I realized that I had handed over such a powerful artifact to Ratatosk, I pitched one hell of a fit, believe you me." Richter laughed quietly to himself, remembering the anxiety that discovery had caused him.

He quite literally wiped the smile off his face, calming to a more dignified tone before he continued. "I was sure you had gotten rid of it, seeing as you never used its powers. I thought for certain something guarded by the seal of Ratatosk must have been something he knew how to use… but he never did. I wonder why not…"

Emil shrugged. "I'm not sure either. B-But that still doesn't answer my other question. What exactly did you lie about…? I mean, obviously you didn't trust me with the entire truth back then, but knowing what I know now, I don't blame you. I understand your reasons for everything, wanting to avenge Aster, prevent the world from plunging into chaos, keeping Ratatosk from wiping out the human race… but that's not really a lie… it was necessary. You had no reason to trust me as a 'Knight of Ratatosk' and even less reason to trust me once you found out I _was_ Ratatosk… "

"That's not the lie I'm talking about, though I'm very grateful that you understand and forgive me for those lies as well… I'm not proud of any of them… but the lie I was referring to was much more recent. Remember how I said I didn't think there was a way for you to do what I can do?" Emil nodded. "Well, seeing as you still have the Yromem Stone, it appears I was wrong about that…"

It took Emil a few seconds to realize what Richter meant, but once he did, he was ecstatic. He jumped to his feet and hugged Richter tightly, shaking with joy. "Richter! Y-you really mean I could use this stone to copy _any_ of your powers?! That's wonderful! I can't believe you would knowingly give such a precious item to me… I'm… I'm so happy!" He squeezed Richter even harder and the redhead blushed in response.

"Hey… Come on… It's not that big a deal… I'm just glad it makes you happy, I don't want thanks for something like that… not after all the things I've put you through… Somebody like me doesn't deserve thanks from someone like you…"

Emil's joy melted into a faint sadness. "Richter, stop blaming yourself for everything. Everything you did… even if it was a bit extreme… you always did it with good intentions in mind… I know you're not a bad person, I always knew it, so stop treating yourself like one!" Emil buried his face into Richter's crimson locks as he nuzzled his shoulder. "Please, Richter… Stop punishing yourself!" Emil sobbed against the redhead's chest. "You never laugh, you rarely smile, you're just so cold sometimes… I just _know_ that's not the real you! Every so often, I catch a glimpse of that hidden part of yourself that you keep buried under all that darkness, but it's so hard sometimes to get you to take off all those disguises. Do you think that if you hate yourself it makes up for the things you did?! Do you think that if you try to be happy, something bad will happen?! Like somebody is going to take it away from you in retribution for your supposed sins?! Do you think distancing yourself from me with all those walls you build from self-loathing and sadness protects either one of us?! It's hurting us both! Why can't you see that?!" Emil sobbed against Richter, eyes pouring tears onto Richter's cloak, and Richter sat speechless, letting the words sink in.

Finally he spoke, stroking the boy's hair tenderly. "What do you want me to do…?"

"Leave it all behind! Throw it away! All that pain, the sadness, the guilt, throw it all away!" Emil screamed as he grasped Richter by the collar, staring up at him with his watery green eyes. "I want you to stop hiding… I want to see you smile! I want to hear you laugh! I want to have a conversation that doesn't result in one of us crying! Don't you understand, Richter?! I love you!"

* * *

**Things that needed clarification:**

**"And the bagpipe didn't say no."** - (Shel Silverstein, "The Bagpipe Who Didn't Say No", Where the Sidewalk Ends, 132). Thank you Shel Silverstein for making my childhood such a memorable and fun one!

**...just five seconds later... - **Originally, the vore in this section was shorter, and there was a bit of a masturbation scene here. I took it out because it just didn't sound or flow as well. Plus the masturbation scene seemed really... well, impersonal for both characters...

**Occam's Razor** - A philosophical and scientific rule that states that simple explanations be preferred to more complicated ones and that explanations of new phenomena should be based on what is already known. As a scientist, Richter would likely employ this sort of reasoning, ignoring the fact that the man this rule is named after did not exist in Aselia...

**...in a futile attempt to keep it from trembling.** - Yeah, I know Richter is really out of character here. But he's drunk. I think you can all excuse a little OOC-ness caused by alcohol, can't you?

**...had never laughed before...** - Yeah, so I wrote this before I was aware of the Richter side-quest in the Camberto Caves where Richter actually _does_ laugh. So, since I already wrote it out this way, and it would be a pain to fix it, in this story, this should be considered the first time Richter laughs aloud in front of Emil. The side-quest was optional, anyway, so just assume that Emil didn't go with Richter to the Camberto Caves in this one, then.


	3. Troubles of the Usual (and Unusual) Sort

The words fell heavily on Richter's ears, resounding in his mind. _Love…_ Richter felt dizzy, the notion seemed so unreal to him. _Love… how can he love me?_ He stared silently down into the boys eyes for a long time, not knowing what to think. The remark had caught him off guard, he didn't even realize that his silence was offending Emil until the boy's face darkened and he got to his feet.

"F-fine! Whatever! To hell with you! Forget what I said, I _hate_ you! You know, for once I really thought you cared about me; I let you use me for whatever you wanted! I gave you aid, I gave you food, I gave you my body, I gave you everything! Now I give you my heart only to realize that you don't want it! **I ****_hate_**** you!** You really are a liar, telling me all these things, acting like you care, making me believe that you might actually love me too… But like you said… all you wanted was to use me, wasn't it…? Wasn't it?! Well congratulations, you've officially taken everything from me… everything you _wanted_ anyway! Keep that stupid stone, I don't want it anymore, either!" Emil grabbed his sword and belt as he stormed away from the campfire. "You know what, I really hope you can find someone who makes you happy, Richter… I really do… _So they can rip your heart out and tear it to __**shreds**__!_ I never want to see your sullen face again! Good-_bye_!"

Richter sat dumbstruck. He was more confused than he had ever been in his life, but one thing he did know, Emil was leaving… and he didn't want Emil to leave. Not even bothering to grab his own things, he chased after Emil. The blond noticed his pursuit and started running. He wanted absolutely nothing more to do with Richter.

"Wait! Emil! Please, wait!" Richter panted. The extra weight he had to carry was slowing him down too much; he'd never catch up to Emil as he was. He sped up his metabolism, one of those inherent talents that he couldn't (or rather _wouldn't_) explain, and within seconds, he was rid of all the excess weight. He ran full speed, now; Emil did the same. But Richter, being faster and stronger by nature, overtook him. As he closed in on Emil, he reached out and grabbed one of the boy's gloved hands. Just as he did, Emil spun around, slapping Richter across the face with his free hand. Richter stood there in shock, and Emil took the opportunity to tear his hand away from Richter.

"I told you… I never want to see you again. So go away!" Emil began to back away, only to have Richter kneel before him, gasping both of his hands frantically.

"No, Emil, please… Please wait… I… _I love you, too!_" He received another fierce slap in response.

"Liar… why should I believe anything you have to say now? You'd say whatever you need to in order to get me to do what you want again. I won't let you use me anymore."

"No, i-it's not like that! Emil, I love you. I really do… with all my heart, I swear it! Please, you're the first person I've ever been able to say that to, you'll probably be the last… It's not something I can say very easily, and I'm sorry I didn't say it the very first moment I realized it! But I love you; I love you so much it hurts… I'll do whatever I can to make you believe me… I'll smile for you, laugh for you, cry for you… _die_ for you! I'll do whatever it takes! So, please… don't leave me…"

Emil felt sick to his stomach… he wanted to believe in Richter, just like he always did, but he felt such intense cynicism, such hatred for him in that moment, he didn't want to trust the man at all. "You're right, Richter… if you really loved me, you should have said so in the first place… because there's no way I'm going to believe you now." Emil pulled away, half of him desperately wanting to go back with Richter, the other half just wanted to forget he ever heard that name. Emil took a moment of introspection, finally deciding that even if he didn't want to leave Richter, he should… at least, for long enough to clear his head and think logically about the whole thing. Finally, as he began to walk away, he felt the earth quiver ever so slightly under his feet. A steady pounding shook the ground, increasing in magnitude with each strike. Both Emil and Richter looked back in horror as a dreaded Shadow Dragon emerged from the pitch black of their midnight surroundings. Richter reached back for Sol and Mani, realizing with terror that neither the axe nor the sword were there. Emil ran past Richter, charging the beast with sword in hand, dealing a fairly strong blow to the dragon's foreleg before retreating to avoid its fierce claws.

Richter watched as Emil slashed madly at the beast, admiring the boy's developed skills for the first time. Unfortunately for Emil, even with his strength all alone, it wasn't enough against a huge dragon. The few deep cuts Emil had managed to inflict only served to make the reptilian monster furious and it swung around, knocking Emil's sword from his hands with a powerful sweep of its tail. It landed in a patch of tall grass about 50 feet from the boy, who immediately ran toward the spot where it disappeared from sight. He dug through the thick glade of grass, frantically trying to locate his blade. He cursed under his breath, feeling the Shadow Dragon's approaching footsteps. By the time he touched the hilt of his sword, it was already too late. He could feel the hot breath puffing from the monster's great black snout as he turned to face its colossal golden eyes. Emil grasped his blade awkwardly and turned it toward the monster, knowing full well that it would do him no good as the dragon opened its mammoth jaws. Just as Emil was ready to kiss the world goodbye and accept the fact that he was going to die, the monster gave a screeching roar and turned away from Emil. Shocked, Emil traced the dragon's line of sight back to the tip of its long black tail where Richter stood, attacking the creature with magic.

The dragon lunged at the half-elf, who narrowly missed being crushed between its blade-like teeth, before the beast lashed out with a powerful forelimb, knocking Richter a good twenty feet across the plains. "Richter!" Emil instinctively ran toward his friend, all feelings of hatred melted away and Emil's tender, loving heart was in control again.

"N-no… Emil, stop… You have to get out of here… We can't win… even together… especially if I don't have my sword… and there's no chance either of us can beat it alone… so go!" Richter yelled as the Dragon pinned him to the ground with one of its massive front legs.

"What are you saying?! Are you crazy?! I'm not leaving you! The Richter I know would never just give up like that! We can beat this thing together. So don't just lay there… get up! Fight back!"

"I'm not giving up…" Richter grunted as the dragon threatened to crush his ribs with its titanic weight. "I'm telling you to escape. I'm telling you… I love you. I want to protect you more than anything, but right now… I can't do that. Even if you don't love me anymore, I still don't want to see you get hurt. All I can do is distract it while you run… If I'm going to have to lose you either way… I want to at least lose you by protecting you. So go! Get away while you can! It's already too late for me."

"No! You stupid idiot! I _do_ love you! So don't say stupid shit like that! I believe you now, okay?! So… don't let it kill you! It's a stupid way to die anyway! If we work together, we can beat it!"

"You really think that?" Richter smirked. "How optimistic…" Richter laughed loudly, though his face was twisted in anxiety as he tried to force the dragon's claws away from his throat. "Well, I don't know how much help I can offer without my sword and axe, but if you're going to try fighting this beast, I guess I have to help you… So stubborn… You should just run…"

"I won't run away! You were the very first person to give me courage, you of all people shouldn't be telling me to do something as cowardly as running away!" Emil began to close the distance between himself and the half-elf, as he spoke.

"Sometimes, the bravest and _smartest_ thing to do is retreat… being a fool is worse than being a coward." Richter tried fruitlessly to distract the hungry black monster by casting magic at its tail. "But then again, me calling you a fool is like the pot calling the kettle black…" He grinned as the huge beast finally responded to the distraction and loosened its grip on the half-elf in favor of chewing off the thick ice that had accumulated on its tail from Richter's repetitive casting. The redhead began to squirm his way out from under the dragon's mighty claws, but just as he managed to wriggle free, the creature's giant teeth clamped down on his shoulder. He cried out in pain but could not pull away, the beast's grip was too strong and had he tried to move, it would have torn his arm clean off. Emil was already rushing at the beast, cutting into its tail as he flew past. The Shadow Dragon growled angrily at the pain, a second nuisance to snack on, it supposed. But first, it had to finish the tasty morsel in its mouth.

The black dragon released its grip on Richter's shoulder only to wrap its snake-like, forked tongue about the man's waist. Emil, who was running up along the beast's flank, hacking away as he went (though to no avail), froze and watched as the gruesome black monster flicked its horned head back, tossing Richter into the air. Mouth gaping wide, Emil watched as Richter - clinging to his shoulder - tried every last spell he knew against the ebony terror below as he plummeted helplessly downward. The spells had little effect, the ice did not freeze, the fire did not burn, the lightning did not paralyze… the beast was nearly invulnerable, ignoring what small twinge of pain the spells did cause. And Emil stared, unable to do anything against the foul creature as he watched the unthinkable happen. The dragon's huge jaws yawned open wide and Emil cringed as he watched Richter fall straight down into the creature's gaping maw. Emil hoped against all hope that the dragon shared Richter's disdain for the taste of clothes and would, perhaps, spit him back out, but all hope soon died as he heard the beast swallow and saw a large bulge slide down the dragon's gullet.

Emil shivered, eyes burning with tears, as the bulge passed down the creature's long neck and into its scaly belly. He gripped his sword tightly, screaming at the top of his lungs as he charged blindly at the beast. He leaped onto its armored black shoulder and sprang into the air, sword outstretched as he began to flip, head over heels, like a table saw.

"Heavenly Tempest!" The spinning blade of Emil's sword broke through the scaly plated skin of the Shadow Dragon's neck, cleaving it from the gargantuan black torso at the shoulders, shearing through muscle, bone, everything. Deep crimson blood rained down on the blond as the beast's severed neck fell twitching to the cold earth on one side, and the beheaded torso toppled over on his other side. Emil ran quickly to the gruesome bloody mess that dripped from the lifeless midsection of the disembodied reptile. He plunged his sword deep into its heart, tearing it all the way down to the base of the tail along the beast's scaly underbelly. He pulled apart the folds of flesh and muscle, nearly vomiting at the awful odor that seeped from the beast's cavernous belly. The scent of rotting flesh and bile made Emil retch, but he still plunged in, searching for Richter. The dim light that managed to penetrate through the narrow seam Emil had cut through the dragon's skin was not much to go by, and the monster's gut was not at all pleasant and welcoming like Richter's was. Emil knelt and felt along the floor of the belly until his fingers grasped a matted, sodden lock of Richter's hair. He quickly reached farther down and grabbed Richter by the underarm as he made a transverse cut along the wall of the dragon's putrid stomach. He dragged the redhead out through the narrow opening, laying him on his back in the grass. His shoulder was dislocated and mangled, but thankfully, the damage wasn't something so serious that a few months of care wouldn't put it right again.

He panted, exhausted, over Richter's slimy body, suddenly aware that Richter was not moving. He hurriedly bent down, pressing his ear to Richter's chest. The heartbeat was still there, but it was faint. He immediately began to search his bag for some sort of suitable herb or gel that might be of use, some bandages, _anything_ that might help Richter. The man's eyes slowly fluttered open and he moaned as he felt the pain in his shoulder. Emil sighed with relief and immediately went about apologizing and nursing and worrying and fussing, finding a place to lean Richter and digging medicinal potion after potion out of his bag. Richter shook his head, placing a finger over Emil's lips as he cleared his throat to speak.

"You know what… I figured out something amazing in there. I think I know why the stone didn't work when I tried to use it while the beast attacked us…" He held up the glowing artifact, covered with slime from the bowels of the dragon. "When the inscription talked about the wielder holding the powers of the stone 'within them', it was meant literally. In order to use the stones powers, you can't just absorb the mana it gives off, you actually have to 'hold the stone itself _inside_ you'… inside your body… when that dragon swallowed me, it also swallowed this stone… I saw it glowing like crazy as soon as I reached the monster's stomach. That's the secret, Emil… in order to use the stone, you have to eat it…" Richter groaned and clutched his shoulder; Emil shuddered as he heard it pop back into place. Emil picked up the shining stone, wiping it in the grass and rinsing it in the little stream that bubbled nearby. He pulled his torn shirt from his bag and wet it in the same stream, carrying the damp cloth over to Richter, wiping down the half-elf's gooey face and hair. Richter thanked him, but remarked that a bath was the last thing on his mind, despite being covered in the foul, putrid sludge from the dragon's innards.

Emil pulled the stone from his pocket again, formulating a plan. "Richter, you say I can copy _anyone's_ powers, right?" Richter nodded weakly. "Well, alright then! Bottoms up!" Emil crammed the stone into his mouth. He immediately felt like gagging; the stone was so big it filled his whole mouth, pressing up against his soft palate at the back of his throat, making him feel almost as if he was choking. He wasn't going to let a little discomfort stop him, however… not when Richter needed him. He tilted his head back, creating a clear, straight path to his stomach. Emil took a deep breath through his nose before finally allowing the stone to slide back, swallowing hard to avoid gagging as the unpleasantly large, cold object stretched the lining of his esophagus as it slowly made its way down. Once it was entirely past the uvula, left with only the straight drop to the stomach, the most difficult part was over. Smooth and rounded as it was, it slid easily down Emil's throat, plunging to its final resting place inside Emil's belly. Emil felt it land inside him with a heavy thud and instinctively put his hand over his stomach, rubbing it gingerly to combat the unusual sensation. It was the first time he had something so big, solid and un-masticated in his stomach; he wondered if this was anything akin to what Richter felt whenever he swallowed him. Once his stomach settled, he looked to Richter for instruction.

"Well, I did it…" he gasped, "N-now what am I supposed to do?"

Richter cradled his shoulder gingerly as he spoke. "You need to think about what you want it to do. Step by step… you need to think about the steps that are needed in order for you to achieve your goal. For example, to create ice, you would need to think about the water, the intense cold… you'd have to visualize the magic happening… at least, that's my best guess…"

Emil nodded. He closed his eyes, picturing Richter's shoulder. He imagined rubbing a poultice on Richter's wound, imagined speaking the incantation that Richter used to perform healing artes, he imagined bandages and weeks worth of healing, the mending of Richter's torn skin. It was a little gruesome for Emil to picture, but he was willing to do it; anything to ease Richter's suffering. At first, Emil felt nothing… except maybe a little discouraged and frightened that the supposed powers of the stone were false. But slowly, he felt a heat radiate from his stomach, a little voice inside him guided him, and without conscious effort, he began chanting a foreign incantation. He placed both hands across Richter's bloody shoulder, and a faint light spread across the gash. Slowly, the blood crusted over, the torn muscles and integument beneath were slowly reconnecting. At last, Emil lifted his hands, ceasing to chant, and before Richter's very eyes, the scab flaked off like a dying rose sheds its petals. It left nothing but flawless skin behind, and all his pain had vanished.

He pulled off his cloak completely, not sure if what he was seeing was real or not. But it was true, his wound had completely healed, the only proof of its existence was the torn shoulder of his Sea Fire cloak. He tested his mended shoulder, stretching it, rotating it, just to be sure; there was no doubt about it, it was working in perfect order, no pain, no soreness, no inhibitions to his movement. Emil sighed, slumping where he knelt, exhausted from the effort. He smiled wanly as he looked over his work, a flawless repair. Richter sat up, catching the blond as he collapsed into his outstretched arms. He felt Emil laughing weakly as he stroked the boy's hair. He wasn't entirely sure why, but he somehow felt compelled to laugh too, perhaps just because of the sweet relief he felt, knowing he was alive and Emil was safe. The sound brought joy to Emil's heart; Richter was alive… they both were… and they were together again, hearts at peace, minds at ease, perfectly in love.

It took a few minutes for Emil to recover from the exertion he had to undergo, performing such advanced magic with no prior skills, but eventually, he was strong enough to stand and walk again. They were both still filthy with the rancid bile of the Shadow Dragon, and their clothes and skin began crusting over with the vile substance. They walked over to the little stream that Emil had used to rinse the Yromem Stone; it wasn't very broad and its current was not swift, but it was deep enough to reach up to Richter's chest if he sat down in the trench. He and Emil waded to the middle of the little river, clothes and all, sitting on the silt-covered bottom as they prepared to bathe. Richter submerged his cloak, letting the water do all the work; being a leather cloak reinforced with synthetic materials, the mucous-like sludge rinsed easily off the smooth surface, but it was prevented from any structural compromise of untreated leather by its man-made inner lining and a special protective coating.

Emil, sitting slightly aside - (so as not to be directly upstream from Richter, thereby preventing the sludge he cleaned off his own clothes from sullying Richter any further) - took off Richter's white camise, which he had quite forgotten he had been wearing. The bile came off easily, but the blood stained terribly. He apologized to Richter, who merely shrugged and laughed, saying that a little blood on his shirt wasn't anything new. He commented that he even considered a stain won by a well-fought battle as a well-earned trophy, the proof of victory, and commended Emil for his superb performance. "You really have grown so much, Emil. To take on an opponent that powerful single-handedly was very brave, even I would have been nervous. I wish I could have seen you finish it off."

"Ugh… it was gross… There was blood everywhere…" Emil moaned, gagging a little as he remembered the sight. "I hope I never have to do something like that again." Richter laughed, and Emil enjoyed its comforting sound.

"Well, to each his own, I guess… I'm sorry you had to do something like that for me… I was stupid to let all this happen. You must have been terrified… I'm glad you're okay, though." Richter smiled at the blond as he shed his pants and underwear, rinsing them and laying them in the grass at the bank of the stream with his cloak. Emil did the same, letting the murky water lift the foul mixture of blood and bile from his shoes, his pants, everything, before he set the damp clothes to the side, sitting nude beside Richter in the cool streamlet. It was summer, and the warm air went undisturbed save for a gentle breeze. Though the water was cold for Emil's preference, it wasn't unbearable, and he enjoyed the quiet, serene atmosphere; a moonlit bath with Richter… if the circumstances had been different, he would have considered it quite romantic.

Richter removed his glasses, Emil was surprised that they hadn't cracked after the beating Richter had taken, not to mention they hadn't fallen off and gotten lost at some point as the dragon swallowed Richter. He watched the half-elf dip is head back into the water, combing his wet hair with his fingers as he worked to get the gunk out of his hair. Emil took his torn shirt from before, and scooted closer to the redhead. He wet the black cloth, making sure it was fresh and clean before he helped Richter wash his hair. It took some effort, Richter's hair was very fine and the slimy mixture of dragon fluids clung tenaciously to each strand, but after a few good scrubs and rinses, Richter's hair was silky and pure again. He offered to trade, to help Emil cleanse and rinse his own airy tufts of gold hair, but the boy shook his head, insisting that he finish bathing Richter first, stating that it would be impractical to switch off more than once and the process of bathing was best done all at once.

He sat behind Richter, damp cloth in hand, as he began to scrub Richter's back. The man remarked that it had been a long time since he had a proper bath, and that bathing outdoors was the _only_ way to truly enjoy it. Emil smiled and agreed, happy to be talking with the redhead, peacefully, tenderly, intimately… being alone together was one thing, but being alone together there and then, unfettered and natural, free from sensual urges, this was a treasured time to Emil. He had never felt closer to Richter, and after rinsing the cloth, he pressed close behind the half-elf, reaching around toward Richter's front as he gently began to scour away the slime on Richter's chest. Richter noticed the boy's thoroughness, remarking that he could manage the rest by himself. Emil merely leaned his head on Richter's shoulder; and Richter, blushing, shrugged and resigned himself to the blond's will.

Emil didn't miss one drop of the grime, scrubbing and rinsing and rinsing and scrubbing, leaving no detail of Richter unclean. **(Huh... something used to be writtren here, but what remains is too blurry to read...)** When the boy had finished and Richter was _far_ beyond clean, he cleared his throat, thanking the blond for the favor and offering to return it at last. Emil nodded shyly; he handed the makeshift sponge to Richter and got to his feet, walking delicately through the water as he settled down in front of Richter.

Richter proceeded in an orderly, organized fashion, starting from the top down. He unmated the disaster that had been Emil's hair and worked his way down toward the boy's smooth, round shoulders. He smiled to himself, declaring that he would have to invest in some nice soap and other bath products the next time they reached a town, something for everyday use. Emil nodded, privately excited at the prospect of making this a daily habit. He liked to spend time with Richter, and he enjoyed everything they did together, but of all the things he had ever done with Richter, this bath was quickly becoming one of his favorites. He thought to himself, as Richter moved around to his chest, that a bath with sweet scented soap and a soft washcloth, shampoo and conditioner, bath salts and exfoliates would be a perfectly wonderful experience for them both.

He made mention of the bathhouse and the natural hot springs he had once visited, and Richter suggested that they should make that the destination of their next journey. Richter followed Emil's example, gently scrubbing the boy thoroughly from head to toe. **(The ink on this portion of the page has washed away. Oddly, the surrounding text remains unmarred...)** There was a feeling of serenity in the air that could not be touched, a peaceful, private, secluded air reserved for them and them alone. Richter wrung out the makeshift sponge, placing Emil's damp and frayed shirt with the rest of their clothes before leaning up against the grassy bank at the edge of the river. He lay back, arms folded behind his head, and stared up at the sky. A few faint clouds rolled by on a gentle breeze, obscuring the stars as they drifted overhead. Richter closed his eyes, not caring about the stars or the clouds or any of that… all that mattered was the moment, then and there, with Emil; he was perfectly comfortable, the sweet smell of grass hung in the air, and the soft trickling of the stream was melodic and pure. The faint splashing of Emil's approaching footfalls made Richter expectant. He waited to feel the blond's smooth, warm skin against his shoulder, expected the boy to sit beside him like before, wrap his arms around him and hold him close.

He was pleasantly surprised to feel that, instead of settling at his side, the boy seated himself in front of Richter, leaning his whole, damp body against Richter's chest, sitting just between his outstretched legs. He glanced down at the boy, feeling the blood color his cheeks as the blond pressed close against him. He laid his arms across Emil's body, cradling him in a loose embrace. Emil wrapped his arms around Richter's in exchange, leaning his head against one of the half-elf's well-toned biceps. Richter glanced across the fields toward where their camp had been; the fire had gone out, no smoke could be seen to indicate its location; they wouldn't be making it back there tonight. Richter didn't mind, though; the weather was fair, and as long as he had Emil, he could care less about returning there. He felt Emil yawn, drowsiness settling in, and the boy snuggled closer against Richter. The redhead looked down, smiling sweetly as he watched the boy's eyelids droop.

He caressed the boy gently, and before long, Emil drifted to sleep in his arms. Richter watched the boy breathing, so innocent and peaceful in his embrace. Richter lifted a hand to stroke the boy's hair, but looking beyond the boy's face and down towards his middle, Richter noticed something he had been unable to see before. A faint glow shone dimly from within Emil's belly, barely visible, but still bright enough to catch Richter's attention. He blushed profusely, suddenly very aroused by the sight. The half-elf couldn't help staring, the memory of Emil, struggling to swallow the stone, the dedication the blond possessed, everything came flooding back to Richter, and the sudden realization that there was something actually _inside_ Emil at that very moment… it all made Richter realize just how similar he and Emil were now. He remembered what Emil had said, how badly the boy wanted to be able to mimic Richter's skills, and smiled. It was going to be a fun and interesting experience to be sure, and he couldn't help but feel apprehensive about switching roles with Emil. He placed his hand back on top of Emil's radiant tummy and hugged the boy close to his bosom, and as he imagined dreamily what the future would hold for Emil and himself, Richter closed his eyes at last and followed Emil into the realm of sleep.

Richter awoke the next day to the smell of eggs and bacon and the warm rays of the sun. His stomach growled, eager to break the fast. He yawned loudly, stretching a moment before sitting up. He felt a dull throbbing pain, the last remnants of the hangover he had - thankfully - slept most of the way through. He rubbed the sleep from his eyes, opening them to find that it was already well past morning and somewhere around noon. His clothes were folded neatly in front of him and his gear - sword, axe and all - had been retrieved. For a moment, he thought the whole ordeal with the dragon might have been a nightmare, that in reality, he and Emil had passed into blissful sleep sometime after intercourse and all the unnecessary fear and heartbreak had been his imagination, a drunken hallucination. However, after looking beyond his things, he noticed the massive black shape of the beheaded Shadow Dragon still lying in the grass.

He was pulled abruptly from his thoughts by Emil's cheery voice. "Good morning, Richter! How did you sleep?" Emil beamed down at Richter, offering the man a plate of fried eggs and crisp bacon.

Richter accepted the plate as Emil sat beside him; he noticed he was still halfway in the river and still entirely naked. He inched his way up the bank of the river, his movements were awkward since the soles of his feet had become ridiculously pruney overnight and were now rather uncomfortable to stand on. Emil was wearing his white camise again… it made Richter smile to see the boy wearing it, the symbol of their love and Emil's bravery. The redhead crossed his damp legs and tucked in to his breakfast, answering Emil between mouthfuls.

"I slept well enough… a bit hung-over, but it's not so bad… but waking up to your smiling face… a thousand hangovers couldn't ruin that happiness." Emil blushed and Richter leaned over to give him a kiss. Emil returned it affectionately. "Have you been up long, Emil?"

"Long enough to cook you some breakfast!" The blond grinned at him as he stuffed another forkful of eggs into his mouth.

"Yes, so I see. Thank you for that, by the way." The boy muttered something about it being an old habit, and really no trouble at all, but the dull, throbbing pain in his head made it difficult for Richter to concentrate on anything but the bare essence of what the little human was saying to him. He rubbed his forehead wearily, trying to numb the pain. "Damn this hangover. The only unpleasant effect of alcohol... Though I suppose I deserve it, the way I drank last night." He gave a self-derisive snort and turned to Emil. "How about yourself? I hope you didn't suffer any ill effects from the alcohol…"

Emil shook his head. "Nope! I've never felt better! I'm sorry you don't feel well, though… I think I've got something that's good for curing nausea… want me to check?"

"No, thanks. It's alright, it's just a little headache, it'll go away soon." Richter finished off his first serving and handed the plate back to Emil. He stood to cross the streamlet, intending to dress now that he was mostly dry, but paused, embarrassed, as he felt a more urgent biological need… after all, he had just woken up. "Umm… Emil? Could you maybe turn around for a minute…?"

Emil cocked his head to the side to express his puzzlement. "What for?"

"I, uh, kind of have to… you know… pee…" his cheeks turned almost beet red.

Emil giggled. "It's nothing to be embarrassed about. I've seen it already, you know."

Richter averted his gaze. "Y-yeah, I know… I just… I-I can't go when someone's watching me…" Emil shrugged but obliged, crossing the stream and busying himself by heaping a second helping onto Richter's plate as the redhead took care of his business. He slipped into his boxers and pants, washing his hands in the cool river water before taking the plate Emil was offering him. He glanced over at his pack, feeling more confident now that his faithful sword and axe were by his side again. He took a heaping mouthful of eggs, sighing to himself as he recalled his near-fatal blunder the night before.

"It was stupid of me to leave my things behind like that. I should have known better, I can't afford to make mistakes like that ever again…" He simpered, remembering how Emil saved him and privately enjoying the dedication the boy had shown; but he soon noticed Emil's face darken with faint disapproval. Realizing he was being too negative and critical of himself, something Emil had specifically told him not to do, he quickly changed the topic to a more positive view. "But we ended up alright, so I guess it's best not to dwell on mistakes; nothing we can do to change the past…" He picked up his canteen from among his things, filling it with river water and taking a long drink. It was cleaner than he remembered, and he blushed when he realized that Emil must have washed it for him; in fact, Emil had washed all his things. "I-it was nice of you to go and get my supplies for me, Emil. I hope it wasn't too much of a bother."

"Oh! Umm… Actually, Richter… I didn't go and get everything… I was kind of… well… scared to leave you behind all by yourself…" Emil twiddled his thumbs, shifting nervously where he stood, cheeks slightly pink. "I-I was afraid that if I left you alone… you might wake up without me… and then you'd think something bad had happened and I didn't want to worry you… Besides, you didn't have any protection… If a monster had shown up, you… well…" Emil didn't want to emasculate Richter, but he knew that even though Richter was a good fighter, even bare-fisted, he couldn't fend off a large monster without serious injury. Richter understood just the same and nodded in agreement. "Smart… very thoughtful of you… It's true that I prefer not to wake up with no weapon and a monster pinning me to the ground in your place." He laughed, winking at Emil. His laughter subsided, however, when he realized that if Emil had stayed with him, there was no one to retrieve his things. "Emil…So then, uh… just who _did_ go and get my effects?"

"I did!" An overly exited female voice rang out from nowhere as Aqua appeared before Richter. He gave a surprised grunt and fell back in shock; after all, it's not everyday that a Centurion stalker who you thought was long gone reappears from nowhere during a moment with your intimate other.

"A-Aqua?! What are _you_ doing here?!"

"Aww, don't be like that, Master Richter, you're breaking my heart!" She winked slyly at him. "I thought you'd be happy to see me. After all, we spent so much time together; I thought we had a nice relationship going."

"Do we have to discuss that again? I thought I told you that we were not involved in any sort of 'relationship'. You were just a traveling companion, nothing more." He edged closer to Emil.

"Is that the kind of thanks I get? How rude!" She flipped through the air, swimming around to Richter's other side, opposite Emil.

"Well… Thanks, I guess… but, again, I ask… What _are_ you doing here?"

"Ah, well, as I was just telling Emil, I followed Tenebrae here."

"Tenebrae?" Richter wrinkled his nose. "What on earth was _he_ doing here?" Richter mentally winced at the thought that he might have another Centurion stalking him.

"Because of that." Aqua pointed one of her slender fingers in the direction of the Shadow Dragon. "Lord Ratatosk said he sensed a disturbance in the mana flow here. He said there was a huge surge then a huge drop in dark energy here, so he sent Tenebrae to check it out." Richter remembered how the Yromem Stone had glowed intensely inside the dragon's stomach; that must have caused the huge surge. Aqua continued to tell her story, though Richter was only half paying attention.

"I followed Tenebrae here because I was curious, and lo-and-behold I find the two of you. So, I decided to stick around… When Emil woke up, he explained about the dragon, then asked if I could watch over you while he went to collect your things. But seeing as you two are an '_item_' now," she giggled suggestively, "I thought I'd do him a favor and let him stay with you…" Richter blushed; he hadn't really thought about it up until now, but after looking at all the events leading up to that point, the kissing, the sex, the bath together… all evidence certainly did point to them being together… but was it really so obvious from the out-of-context data Aqua had gleaned from their story? He loved Emil, but he wasn't exactly ready to scream that to the whole world just yet. He was perfectly happy with their little, secretive, intimate relationship; he really didn't want the pressure of walking around in public with Emil having others expecting them to behave like a couple. He preferred to keep his love life out of the public eye, and if it was going to be that obvious to other people… well, he was going to be uncomfortable with that.

Aqua sensed he was ill at ease, and though she had gotten over the fact that she had lost her beloved Richter to a rival like Emil, she still cared about him. "Well… I suppose if I'm interrupting your time together, I'll just go. It was nice seeing you again… Master Richter…" She waved at them and began drifting away on the breeze, swimming with the air currents until she faded away, presumably returning to Ratatosk somewhere below the earth. Richter gave a relieved sigh. It wasn't that he hated Aqua's company, but she had a tendency to make things awkward. To avoid discussing the uncomfortable encounter, Richter busied himself by stuffing a few more forkfuls of breakfast into his mouth.

He polished off about eight servings before leaning back, relaxing as Emil rinsed off the plate and fork. When the blond had packed up everything he had used for cooking, he joined Richter in the soft grass. Richter smiled at the boy and pulled him close, thanking him for breakfast with a tender kiss. The boy smiled back at him, but it was quickly replaced by a faint grimace as the blond's stomach grumbled quietly. At that moment Richter sat abruptly upright, realizing that for some peculiar reason, Emil hadn't eaten.

"Emil! W-why didn't you eat anything?! Aren't you hungry?!" For a moment, the half-elf was afraid that perhaps the Yromem Stone was creating some imbalance in the boy's system, that the human's apparent loss of appetite might be the result of some serious side effect he hadn't thought about. He checked Emil's forehead for a fever and pat the blond's abdomen, searching for any abnormalities that might prove dangerous. "Are you feeling alright, Emil? No pain or discomfort?"

Emil shook his head. "No, I'm alright. I said so before, didn't I? It's just… well…" He hesitated, turning terribly red. Richter stared apprehensively at him, heart pounding in his chest as he worried despite the boy's insistence that he was fine. Emil leaned in close, whispering past the locks of red hair into Richter's ear. "I-I was kind of hoping we could… w-well, uh… t-test out the stone's powers again… you know… f-for the original reason that I was talking about."

Richter sighed with relief, smiling at the boy as he mopped his sweaty brow. "Oh, is that all? Phew… I thought for a second there that something was seriously wrong. You should have said something sooner." Richter cleaned his silver-rimmed glasses on the corner of his cloak as he hung it on his shoulders like a cape. "If Aqua were still here, she could help…" Emil looked at Richter with a mixture of confusion and disappointment. He wanted to try it out on Richter, why'd he have to go and bring Aqua into this? Richter immediately understood how what he said could be misinterpreted and quickly explained his rationale.

"I meant just for practice! After all, you still don't know how it's going to feel, what if you don't like it? What if you panic? What if something goes wrong? If you eat me, how can I help you? Or worse, what if you can't keep yourself from digesting? What would happen to me then?! There are so many unknowns here, Emil, and I wouldn't want either one of us to suffer because we rushed into this blindly. Besides, it's kind of ambitious to try to swallow me for your first time anyway. I mean, look at me; I'm quite a bit bigger than you and I'm not so sure you can handle something my size just yet. I was thinking we might try something smaller, easier to swallow."

Emil now realized why Richter had mentioned Aqua. "Oh! You were thinking maybe I could try it on a small monster first! I see now!"

"Exactly… but unfortunately, without Aqua or another Centurion we can't summon any tamed monsters, and a wild one would surely cause an uproar if you ate it… not a pleasant experience, I'd imagine, and I doubt it would hesitate to cause you discomfort if it thought it could somehow get out alive … No, we definitely need a tame monster."

"Like a Polwigle?!" Aqua giggled as she reappeared beside Richter, extending her arms and offering up a cute, squishy, tadpole-like monster.

"Holy fu-! D-do you _have_ to sneak up on me like that?!" Richter just about jumped out of his skin at the Centurion's sudden return.

She stuck out her lip in a childish pout. "What? You don't want it? Humph! Meany… I was only trying to help you, Master Richter!" She hugged the Polwigle close to her chest, sticking her nose up at the half-elf and turning away.

Richter grimaced and quickly apologized. "No, no. I'm sorry… that was rude of me. We do want it; it's exactly what we need. May we please have it?" She pretended to be mad for a moment longer before she turned back to the redhead with a smile.

"Well… Okay!" She winked at him and he tried his best not to gag (her excessive playfulness made him rather nauseated). She handed over the teal-skinned amphibian and Emil beamed with excitement as he eagerly awaited his first vore experience. Richter had never held a Polwigle before, and he found to his surprise that it was not slimy as he expected; its skin was rubbery and smooth like silk, it felt damp with just the faintest trace of buttery slipperiness. It wobbled playfully back and forth in his hands, entirely unaware that it was about to become food.

Richter kneeled next to Emil and handed the squishy creature to the teen. "Alright, remember what I said, think about each step and the magic should do the rest."

Emil trembled with excitement, "Are you joking?! I've done nothing _but_ think about this step-by-step for the last 30 minutes!" The cute little monster stared up at Emil with its adorable shining eyes, and Emil almost felt bad about what he was going to do with it. Almost… He licked his lips and drew the Polwigle up to his face; the poor little creature had only a moment of fear to kiss the sunlight goodbye as Emil stretched his mouth over the turquoise creature's face and roly-poly body. It tasted like Emil had expected, a lot like sushi, but milder, almost tasteless. The teen focused intently as he sucked the rest of the Polwigle's soft body into his mouth. Richter watched intently, both to ensure the boy's comfort and to sate his own curiosity and feed his own secret pleasure. Emil finally slurped up the last bit of the Polwigle, the twitching little tail, before he switched to thoughts of swallowing. He knew the stone would help, allowing him to stretch which would make swallowing less of a chore, but it still felt awkward, trying to swallow a big, solid object like that. Before he had time to debate matters, whether to spit the creature back up and ask for Richter's help or to try his damnedest to ignore his gag reflex and try to swallow the monster anyway, the Polwigle made the choice for him.

In its excitement, disoriented as it was, the Polwigle did what any sensible creature would do: try to escape. However, being one of the dumber monsters, the Polwigle hadn't the slightest idea as to how to go about escaping, and in its haste to do so, squirming toward what it believed was freedom, it squirmed all the way to the back of Emil's mouth and into the teen's throat.

Taken by surprise, Emil didn't have time to think, but his body seemed to know what it was doing, regardless of his command. Immediately feeling the presence of potential food, the throat muscles began peristalsis, grabbing onto the Polwigle's pudgy body and pulling it down toward Emil's waiting belly. Emil grabbed one of Richter's hands tightly, still overcoming his confusion as to what had just happened, and Richter comforted the boy, stroking his back with his free hand as he watched the monster's progress as a rather large bulge slid steadily down Emil's throat. Finally, letting out a breath that he wasn't aware he was holding, Emil felt a strange squish and heavy thud as the tadpole-monster finally dropped into his hungry belly.

He looked down and examined himself, gazing wide-eyed at what had become of his waistline. His shirt - or more accurately Richter's shirt that he was wearing - had ridden up and his pants had been forced down to make way for the impressive bulge where the Polwigle now resided in his stomach. He had a sort of pregnant look to him now, the round body of the tadpole creature made a nearly perfect sphere of his midriff where the pants and shirt were forced apart. He placed a hand on top of the bulge and pet it, confirming that it was in fact his belly.

He smiled up at Richter, laughing a little prematurely before he gasped and clutched at his tummy, moaning in discomfort as Richter immediately leapt into action. "What's wrong Emil?! Does it hurt?!" He rubbed the blond's belly between the teen's hands as the boy tried desperately to stop whatever was happening inside.

"Oooogh… R-Richter… Ahhhhnn… Mmmmnnnn… It-it won't stop moving! Oww… W-what is it doing in there?! Richter, make it stop, make it stop!" Richter felt for himself exactly what was causing the boy discomfort; he could see and feel the creature writhing wildly in the boy's stomach, not behaving at all like the harmless, gentle monster it had seemed. Richter massaged the spot, kneading the tight muscles, but he could do nothing to help the blond. _Why is it doing this to him?! I've never had a painful experience like this… what's going on?!_ He bit his lip as he tried his best to comfort the human boy in his arms.

Slowly, however, he felt the movement subside and the blond's whimpers quieted as well. He breathed a sigh of relief and looked up at Aqua, a puzzled and somewhat scolding look on his face. She shook her head and waved her hands in front of her, trying to block the menacing glare. "It wasn't me, Master Richter, I swear! Emil and I are good friends now! I honestly don't know what went wrong!" She floated closer. "I-I'll have a look and see, if you'd like…" Richter shrugged and let her do as she wished… so long as she wasn't hurting Emil, he didn't mind. She pressed one of her pointed ears against Emil's taught skin, listening for the quiet voice of the tadpole-creature within… she heard nothing.

She frowned a bit, straining her ears; surely, she would be able to hear _something_ if there was something there to hear… and then she realized what the problem was. "Master Richter… I think it… died…" Richter's eyes widened and Emil went a bit pale.

"I-i-it… _died?_" Emil stammered. He was beginning to look like he was going to throw up. "Why-why would it die…?"

Richter nodded. "Of course… I get it now. You were digesting it, Emil… that's why it was panicking so much. Then, after a while, you digested it enough to kill it… that's all there is to it." Emil really did feel like throwing up now and was dry-heaving where he sat. Richter hugged the boy, pulling him into his lap. "Hey, it's okay… you didn't mean for it to happen… it's hard to control something involuntary like that."

"But… it-it could have been _you_, Richter!" The boy squealed.

Richter merely laughed. "Of course not! Do you really think I'd let something like that happen to me? I'd have told you right away if something was wrong, and even if you had panicked, I have magic I can use in case of emergencies… don't worry about it, alright? I promise, nothing bad would have happened to me… I just wanted to make sure our first time wasn't quite so… stressful, as this one. You just haven't got the hang of it yet…" he kissed Emil on the forehead. "Here… shall we try it again?"

Emil shook his head. "No? Why not? I promise, this time will be different… I've got an idea…" Emil looked curiously at Richter. "This is going to sound silly, but I want you to try meditating."

Emil mentally frowned at the idea. _Wasn't I already doing that?_

As if reading the blond's mind, the older male simply shrugged and snuggled closer to the boy, preparing for another long explanation. "Look… I'm not really good at explaining my powers, but I'll give it a shot. When I'm trying to control my metabolism, I only have to think about the functions slowing down or speeding up. It's like a form of meditation… I've gotten better at it over the years, so it's not as hard for me as it probably is for you. There are different ways to do it; many people can control their biorhythm with meditation in different ways. Some researchers in Flanoir have learned to maintain their body heat with something called Biofeedback… they just have to meditate on warmth and suddenly, they don't feel the cold anymore." He rocked back and forth with the blond, stroking his cheek affectionately. "Maybe it's the same for me, all I have to do is decide what I want, digest, don't digest, speed up, slow down, and my body does it for me. I guess because it works in combination with my powers I have an easier time adjusting this particular biorhythm but… well, maybe it might be easier for you if you tried meditating too…"

"And I think you're both thinking too hard." Aqua lounged on an updraft. "It's magic, isn't it? There's nothing scientific about it. Research it all you want, Mr. Scientist, but you mortals will never really come close to the divine design that this world was built upon. I don't understand everything myself, and Tenebrae is much better at all the technical stuff, but one thing I know is that it's unnatural to break down phenomena like these. That stone copies people's powers, right? Well, you shouldn't have to think that hard if that's all the stone does! You're trying to do this all from scratch, that's why it isn't working. No wonder the Polwigle died, I thought you had copied Master Richter's powers already. You should have told me first silly." She placed her hand over Emil's enlarged midriff and whispered some incantation.

The mass deflated slowly and a ball of mana reformed in Aqua's hand. Emil looked to Richter for an explanation. He muttered something about monsters never really dying, merely being reshaped over and over, but left most of the crucial details out. Emil let it go, more interested in the new Polwigle that Aqua had created from the mana in her hands. She handed it to Richter who looked almost as surprised as Emil did.

"Eat it." She commanded. She turned Emil around in Richter's lap, and the boy squeaked embarrassedly as she manipulated him forcefully into a rather romantic position with Richter. She placed one of Emil's hands on Richter's smooth, toned chest, just above his heart (which was beating very quickly now that he was in such intimate physical contact with Emil in the presence of a third party) and she placed Emil's other hand over Richter's stomach, now proudly displaying a rather hard and well-defined set of abs. Richter blushed as he found himself a little uncomfortable at Aqua's intrusion, preferring that he himself should be the instigator of any and all of his and Emil's amorous activities together. Seeing the blond's shy smile, however, he found himself a bit more at ease, enjoying the unforeseen intimacy of the moment. Emil noticed and calmed down as well, allowing himself to be adjusted and moved as Aqua saw fit as she set them up according to her plan.

"There, now. That just about does it. Alright, Emil, close your eyes and concentrate on what you feel, forget all the science stuff Master Richter was trying to cram into your head before." Richter rolled his eyes, but hearing Emil laugh at the remark, he couldn't help but smile too, though he wasn't particularly pleased at the way Aqua was commanding the situation. Emil did as he was told, thinking of only the faint beating of Richter's heart and the slow steady breaths the man took.

"Now, Master Richter, do what you normally do. Let Emil concentrate on what _your_ body is doing. Let the stone do all the "science", alright?" Richter sighed, rolling his eyes once more, but obliged. He pulled the rotund, little Polwigle into his mouth, enjoyed the delicate flavor for a moment (though he much preferred the salty mildness of Emil's skin) and then swallowed the squirmy tadpole. He felt it slipping down that usual, long, straight slide toward his waiting stomach, nothing unique about its presence. What was unusual was Emil, how his face changed as he felt its movement. It wasn't an expression of pain, nor of pleasure, but of… understanding. A slow, gradual crease to the brow, a straight, unbent mouth, neither frown nor smile. All the while, the stone was glowing faintly, but visibly, from inside Emil, somehow absorbing knowledge and experience from the event. Richter focused on Emil, the slight frown, the faint smile, the twitch of an eyebrow, that calm, contemplative face. It would waver from moment to moment, change slightly, but it wasn't entirely gone until a few moments after Richter felt the Polwigle settle comfortably, and without complaint, inside his now plump belly.

At last, when Emil broke from that cold, meditative look, he was smiling, laughing under his breath as he felt the little monster twitching indifferently inside Richter. He opened his eyes and grinned at Richter, who returned the smile readily and eagerly. Emil turned toward Aqua, ready to try again. She nodded and approached Richter, repeating the same chant as before, reforming the Polwigle again and handing it to Emil. He nodded and thanked her and she bowed her head in response; she said nothing, fading away once more, though Emil was sure she was still nearby keeping an eye on them, but whether it was for their safety or to sate her own curiosity, he didn't care. He turned and smiled winsomely at Richter who chuckled under his breath; the boy was so undeniably cute at the moment, it made Richter smile just thinking about how happy the blond must be.

Without hesitation, Emil stuffed the aquatic monster into his mouth, having no trouble at all swallowing this time around. He felt the roly-poly monster slowly inch down his throat, and he smiled inwardly at what he knew would come next. Emil let out a contented sigh as he felt the creature slide into his belly with a meaty squish. He leaned against Richter, full and comfortable, now and again letting a little moan of pleasure as the small monster shifted inside him. No discomfort this time, no pain, everything was perfect.

Richter smiled down at the human in his arms, that innocent face blushing prettily as the boy wrapped one arm around the half-elf and one arm around his own round tummy. "There, now. How does _that_ feel?" Richter chuckled as the blond snuggled closer still.

"Ohhhh… It's amazing…" Emil slurred, still completely hypnotized by the pleasant churning of his stomach. Richter laughed, and the blond joined in; they were both pleased with the results. Richter wiped a trickle of drool from the corner of Emil's mouth; the boy was nearly drunk from the sheer bliss of it all, he hardly noticed. Emil looked into the half-elf's eyes, reaching up to him until he could reach the back of the man's head. He pulled it toward his own, bringing down the billowing locks of red hair with it until his face was inches away. Then he kissed him; it was a natural, unprompted kiss and Richter was glad to receive it.


	4. Relationship Turbulence

It was a while before Emil actually got what he had first intended, but the wait didn't seem so long, there were plenty of other "diversions" that made the time go by quickly. As promised, Richter had since purchased bath supplies, and the two had shared many a special, soapy interlude between adventures. And, just as they promised, they set aside a special trip to go to the Hot Springs. Neither of them really expected the outcome of that day, but it was one of those miraculous little happenstances that created beautiful memories for the both of them.

As was the custom, both of them were showering, purifying themselves before the mineral bath. The sun was just beginning to set, and Emil was looking forward to watching the colors flood the sky with Richter. The half-elf had just finished scrubbing Emil, and he rinsed the pomegranate body wash out of the luffa as Emil let the last of the orange scented shampoo wash out of his blonde hair. They were the only two guests at the Hot Springs that day, so Richter could be as intimate as he liked. He hugged the little human from behind, handing him the sponge and taking in the sweet and sour aromatics of the boy's new scent. He hummed absent-mindedly as he enjoyed the tropical perfume and asked which scents the boy had planned for him.

Emil shrugged, turning over a few different choices in his hands. Finally, he settled on a cherry and peach body wash and cinnamon apple shampoo. He poured a bit of the body wash into the sponge and handed it to Richter as he filled the palm of his hand with the sweet and spicy smelling shampoo. Richter sat on the damp wooden stool where Emil had been before as he started soaping up his upper body; Emil started on Richter's hair. He worked the viscous, aromatic shampoo into Richter's scalp, gently massaging the skin as he lathered the shampoo along the roots of the soft, crimson hair. The aroma was intoxicating, and it took all of Emil's strength to finish what he started and not succumb to the insatiable urge to curl up in Richter's lap like a kitten and let the scents mesmerize him. He treated the ends of the silky red hair with a bit of matching green apple conditioner before Richter handed him the sponge again. He finished his duties by scouring the half-elf's back, the fragrance of peach was almost overpowering. At last, Richter tilted his head back and rinsed himself; the cloudy white suds collected at the drain in the middle of the tiled shower room.

Emil gathered their belongings and stuffed them into the locker beside the one where they had left their clothes before he followed Richter out to the hot springs. The steaming pools of natural, mineral-rich water gave off plumes of vapor in the night air. Richter eased himself into the warm waters, letting out a deep sigh as he settled comfortably on a shelf of rock at the perfect depth for him to rest against the side of the spring with barely his head above the surface. Emil floundered a bit through the water, trying to find a spot at which he could touch bottom. He tiptoed along the ridge beside the half-elf, who laughed as he finally lifted the blond by the underarms and seated him in his lap.

Emil blushed and muttered a thank you as he leaned back in the half-elf's arms. They smelled like a fruit basket, sitting together with their mixed scents and Emil was suddenly made aware of how hungry that was making him. He felt Richter wrap his arms around his waist, the skin was smooth and soft now after a good scrub; it felt nice, Emil thought, to be fresh and clean after a long journey and it was just as nice to feel Richter's skin rejuvenated. He wasn't the kind to pamper himself, and his complexion suffered for it; Emil had always thought it a shame, Richter had such beautiful skin when he cared for it. Emil leaned against the half-elf's shoulder; he could still see the scar where Richter had been clawed by a monster in the caves on that journey a long time ago. The skin had reformed unusually taught and hard, as all scars do; Emil felt a bitter disappointment that he could not have healed that wound as easily as he had healed the gash from the Shadow Dragon, no scar or sign of it could be seen. He inclined his head and kissed the man's scarred shoulder, wishing it away as the man cradled him gently.

The sweet-spicy aroma wafted from the man's hair and mixed with the tangy scent of Emil's own; the smell of fruit was so strong, so decadent, Emil rather wished they had some to share… it would make for a perfect, romantic evening. His stomach growled, low and inconspicuously, but Richter felt it just as much as Emil did. He pat the blond's little tummy affectionately, laughing quietly to himself. "Sounds like someone's hungry…" He bent down and kissed the blond's forehead. "What should we have today, then? D'you want to stop by an inn? Or did you already plan for something?" Emil couldn't get the smell out of his mind… that cinnamon apple smell… the peach and orange… the pomegranate and faint hint of cherry… He didn't know what to answer; he probably couldn't if he tried. Richter smelled too good… That burning desire from before was reignited, much to Emil's dismay. Now was not the time, he thought, to ask about _that_ again… There was no way he could tell Richter what he _really_ wanted to eat… not now… the moment was too special. Emil wished it wasn't so, wished his stomach hadn't interrupted them, he just wanted to sit there with Richter, undisturbed and unified with the man he loved. He didn't want to switch gears to something unrefined and passionate just because his stomach brought it up, but his belly groaned anew, insistent.

He sighed, submitting to his stomach's demands, and whispered to the redhead. "I, um, a-actually… I was wondering if… if I could, uh, e-eat you, Richter…" Richter blinked in surprise and Emil immediately felt silly for asking the question. Emil instinctively turned away from the half-elf, hiding his face as it flushed brightly in shame. He felt the man's smooth fingers caress his cheek as Richter tilted Emil's face toward his own.

He kissed the young blond tenderly and they parted with a smile. "Of course, Emil… I thought you'd never ask…"

Richter looked around for a moment, smile widening as he lifted his human companion, carrying him over to a shallower basin of water he had spotted nearby. It was a perfect fit; there was just enough room for the two of them to fit comfortably inside and Emil could sit up against the side at a pleasant angle, perfect for relaxing later.

"There, now," the redhead grinned, "that ought to be more comfy for you. Thank goodness no one else is around… Alright then… let's get started." Emil had already closed in for a kiss, interrupting the half-elf before he had a chance to make one little proviso. He smiled, waiting for Emil to release him before he spoke. "Don't get ahead of yourself, kid… I have one condition… I'd like you to do it feet first, if that's alright." Emil cocked his head; he didn't particularly mind, but why on earth do it feet first?

Richter blushed as he explained. "Look, I just… I'm … I'm a little nervous, too… This will be… a first for me… I'm not really sure what to expect. And this could be difficult for you too, considering my size; I want to be able to coach you through it for as long as I can… If we do it feet first, I can let you know immediately if something goes… wrong…" Emil shuddered a little, remembering the not-so-pleasant experience with the Polwigle. Richter cleared his throat, adding a little more levity to his reasoning. "Also, doing it that way will let you opt out if it gets too rough for you, just give me a sign and I'll be able to ease myself out if you have any trouble."

Emil nodded. "Alright, Richter. I understand…" His hungry belly interjected, reminding him of his motive and renewing his enthusiasm. The half-elf smiled and lay flat on his stomach, pointing his toes toward Emil and blushing over his shoulder as the blond began. It was an unusual feeling, a warm, wet sensation that kept creeping up along his feet to his ankles, but at the same time, Richter found the sensation to be invigorating and new. He sighed happily as the blond finally sucked both feet into his mouth and swallowed. He felt his toes squeeze into a narrow space, a small, tight passage and the rest of his feet followed soon after as Emil swallowed yet again, working his way up Richter's calves with relish.

Emil was amazed at just how good Richter tasted. He hadn't expected much at all, perhaps a mild saltiness like that of sweat, but was quite astounded to find that the aromatics of Richter's body wash had altered his perception of the man's flavor. The delicate scent of peach filled his nose and the subtle undertones of cherry made it all the more sweet; Emil was pleasantly surprised to find that Richter tasted exactly as he smelled. He savored the sweet, nectar-like flavor as he drew more and more of Richter's legs into his mouth. He had reached about halfway up the half-elf's calves now, and he paused a moment, glancing up at Richter to judge his progress. The redhead was smiling at him over his shoulder, giving him a thumbs up.

"You're doing great, Emil. You're about an eighth of the way… you feel okay?" Emil grinned back and made a muffled sound of affirmation. Richter nodded. "Alright, that's good. Remember, don't push yourself. If you feel even the least bit uncomfortable, you should stop… even if you're only a little bit queasy, just stop and spit me out, don't force yourself. After all, it's not any fun for either of us if you're in pain, is it?" Emil gave Richter a thumbs up as a sign that he understood (it was rather hard for him to nod with the man's legs in his mouth and halfway down his throat) and continued to pull more and more of the half-elf inside.

Richter smiled as he watched; he had never seen it from this point of view before… He was rather intrigued by his powers himself and even more intrigued to see them mimicked by someone else. Watching his legs disappear into Emil's mouth was quite the experience for him, he found he rather liked the way the blond eagerly licked his skin in gentle, loving strokes and sucked him down with that same fervor… but just as he was starting to enjoy it, Emil stopped again, making a muffled groan that sounded to be half disappointment and half discomfort (perhaps with a slight tinge of fear mingled in somewhere).

"What's the matter, Emil, are you stuck? I'm too big, aren't I…? Do you want to quit?"

"Hnh-nn" Emil mumbled, a rather muffled version of 'nuh-uh', but his intonation made it clear that he did not want to stop; this puzzled Richter.

"You don't want to? Then why'd you pause?" Richter blinked at the boy who had reached almost to his knees. Truth be told, Emil was starting to get a little nervous; he was reaching one of Richter's thickest areas, his thighs and hips, and it was already a tight fit as it was… Emil wasn't entirely sure he could finish what he started anymore… not to mention that he was feeling a rather awkward sensation around his middle… But he did want to continue, he really did… he just wasn't sure how.

Richter looked at him, puzzled expression glued to his face as the boy stalled there. Emil was breathing deeply, almost like someone preparing to vomit, and Richter expected some sort of cue to begin easing himself out as the boy delayed progression; after all, he was much bigger than a Polwigle… perhaps Emil had "bitten off a little more than he could chew", so to speak. However, after a few moments, the half-elf noticed the faint glow of the Yromem Stone shining rather conspicuously from within Emil. The glow seemed to intensify for a moment and suddenly, Emil was taking another swallow as he started to progress once more. Richter noted that the boy's pace had increased as well; the Yromem Stone must have modified his powers again, allowing the blond an easier time of swallowing him. He laughed, watching the boy's apparent eagerness as Emil seemed to be quite earnest in his technique, almost in a hurry to compensate for the brief pause. He reminded Emil that there was no need to rush and that he should only go as fast as he was comfortable with. Emil simpered, letting out something like an embarrassed laugh as he obeyed, slowing to his original pace as he savored the red-head's sweet flavor. The redhead folded his arms on the ground in front of him, resting his head upon them as he continued to watch Emil's advancement.

For some reason Emil didn't quite understand, he was suddenly relieved of the tension and stress inside of him and had started swallowing immediately after the discomfort had miraculously passed. He realized at that moment that the awkward feeling around his midsection had been Richter's feet pressing at the opening to his stomach and felt them push in with a satisfying squish. He smiled to himself as Richter wiggled his feet in their less confining chamber and Richter smiled as well at the thought of where his feet now were.

He grinned back at the teen. "Well, now… how about that… second checkpoint cleared… I'm officially in your stomach now, kid. What do you think about _that_?" He winked at the young human who returned the gesture with a giggle. The youth pressed onward, sucking for all he was worth and enjoying every second of it. His throat was finally getting used to the prolonged, overstretched sensation, and he could focus on the sweet aroma and flavor that grew bolder and fresher with every breath and swallow. He continued along the redhead's legs, enjoying the new texture of the man's thighs, softer and smoother than his shins; there was just a little more adipose tissue there, and the muscles were a little less defined than in other areas, but Emil could care less... they were just so good... Richter's feet were already rubbing against the opposite wall of his stomach, and he was finally beginning to stretch. It was a little painful at first, since all the force was applied to one small area, but with every swallow, the pain was changed to bliss. Emil's body was adapting to it's needs excellently, and he was no longer concerned with the increasing thickness as he continued toward Richter's hips. Another few swallows and **he engulfed them, grinning broadly as he continued along the soft, smooth skin of Richter's waist.**(Odd, large segments of the text have been scrawled over in permanent ink, as if to hide something and suspiciously new slips of paper with bold text have been glued over other portions. How very suspicious...)

**"You're doing well, Emil. You're a bit more than halfway done. Not bad for a beginner." The redhead winked at the young human.** Emil smiled proudly back at Richter as he took another swallow. **Before he knew it, Emil had reached the base of the older male's ribcage. **Richter's feet had already reached the other side of his small belly and had stretched it as far in that direction as it was willing to go, and the redhead's legs were folding in after them. His middle was pleasantly distended, but he still couldn't wait to enjoy it at its fullest. Another swallow and he was brushing up against Richter's sensitive nipples. Richter shuddered with the tingle that the slight touch brought**.**(How strange. This period is larger than average, as though it was changed to hide a comma... Stranger yet is the gap following it, where several words could have fit. Curiouser and curiouser...) He realized how far the blond had progressed and suggested a change in position.

"I think it'd be a little easier for you now if you sit up, Emil. Use gravity to your advantage and the last bit should be a breeze…" Emil did as he was asked, fumbling a little with the new weight and girth he now possessed, and sat upright, tilting is head back for a straighter path. Richter put his arms up over his head as Emil gulped him down up to his chin. Emil was surprised at how much easier and faster this was now; it had taken only one swallow to pull Richter in from his chest to his chin… one more and most of Richter's head would be inside him and it wouldn't take more than seven more for the rest of him to follow. Richter took this final opportunity to give Emil one last opt out.

"So, you still feel alright? Think you can finish? Remember, you don't have to force it… once my head's inside, I'm afraid it's all up to you to finish me from there or spit me back up without my help… Are you positive you're going to do this? Are you absolutely sure you feel up to it?" Emil gave a muffled confirmation. "Alright then… Go for it!" Richter smiled, though there was no way the blond could see it. "If you feel up to it, then go right ahead, I'll see you on the inside, alright?" Emil responded with a powerful swallow that propelled Richter down as far as expected; only the top of his head was visible. Another gulp, he was in up to his elbows, waistline just passed into the stomach. A third, he was in up to the forearm; Richter's chest was just slipping into Emil's engorged belly. A fourth swallow reached his wrists, pushed Richter's head deeper inside, until it was just outside his stomach, and the fifth pulled Richter's hands into his mouth. He closed his lips around the redhead's fingers, sucking on them for a short while, savoring the unexpectedly sweet flavor just a _little_ longer. The redhead's long, slender digits explored the mouth for a moment, and Richter rather enjoyed the way Emil's tongue wormed it's way between each of his fingers, leaving a sticky coating of saliva on his hands. The sixth swallow brought the head into the stomach and the hands into the throat and the final swallow, with a gentle pull from Richter, reunited Richter with his arms and hands as his entire body finally came to rest within Emil's.

Emil released a deep breath, a contented sigh, as he flopped down onto his back in the pool of warm water. He leaned against the side of the basin, enjoying the spring's warmth again as he looked down to see the result of his endeavors. He was pleased and amazed all at once. He had seen Richter's stomach, plump and full after a big meal, had imagined how big it might be filled with his own mass, but he never imagined what his own belly might look like filled with Richter… It was _huge_… So large, in fact, that it protruded from the spring water, water at a level that submerged his chest… Emil rested a hand on the fleshy mound, rubbing it up and down to find to his satisfaction that it was indeed his own belly and it was very, very full.

He smirked as it rippled at his touch and began to pet it, relishing the wonderful sensation that it brought. On the inside, Richter was experiencing quite a pleasant sensation himself. It was warm and soft and comforting; he had never felt more at peace. Emil's touch made him relaxed and calm (though he had been relaxed and calm to begin with). He could have just drifted off to sleep right then and there, but then he would be denying Emil one of the best parts of his meal. Richter was careful to be gentle at first, not knowing if the sensation would be pleasant for the blond or not, as he shifted his position inside the boy, rubbing against the supple, stretchable walls of the stomach.

Emil felt it, of course, and was rather surprised at just how strongly he _did_ feel it. It hadn't felt very significant when Richter had first entered his stomach, but that small rub, that almost undetectable shift of position, made him moan with pleasure. The sound encouraged Richter who rubbed against the slick walls of Emil's stomach once more. Emil's eyes rolled back and his mouth gaped wide, grin plastered to his face as he reveled in the amazing feelings coming from his round tummy.

Richter smiled as the boy reacted to his touch, knowing the feeling quite well himself, which motivated him to keep moving, continuing to provide what he knew was an exquisite sensation for Emil. "So, Emil… what do you think? Am I good?"

Emil let out a tiny burp in response, licking his lips as he settled down into a more comfortable position. "Mmmmm… you're amazing, Richter… I don't think I'm ever going to let you out…" Emil joked, though there was a small part of him that really wanted to keep Richter inside him forever. The half-elf laughed.

"Well, I'm glad you like having me that much, but you'll have to let me out sometime…You'll need to eat some real food, after all. Besides, it's not fair if you just keep me in here forever and never let me have another chance to eat you again, isn't it?" He rubbed against Emil's stomach affectionately.

"Yeah… I suppose you're right." Emil smiled down at his large, Richter-filled bulge and watched it shift and turn as the half-elf inside pleasured him. He hiccupped as his diaphragm sought to reclaim its original position, but even that made him feel good, jostling his insides every few seconds, giving his belly a little jerk, which made Richter move around as well… It felt so good.

For a moment, the hiccups concerned Richter - he himself found them rather unpleasant - but after asking Emil if he was alright, he discovered the boy was enjoying himself. Richter shrugged and figured whatever made Emil happy was fine by him. He lay back, enjoying the warmth as he rubbed Emil from inside, getting used to the sudden jerks caused by the hiccups. After one particularly violent jerk of the diaphragm, a smooth rounded object bounced up from somewhere beneath his folded legs and into his lap. It was the familiar glowing Yromem Stone, and it's faint light made Richter's surroundings shimmer, reflecting bright flecks of light off the slimy folds and ridges of Emil's stomach. He examined his surroundings, finding the visual appearance of Emil's insides rather welcoming, a deep rouge color, glossy surface, soft, warm, like a big wet blanket… For some reason, Richter liked that… that feeling of being totally enveloped in a protective cover, though he much preferred to provide that kind of safety for Emil.

Another hiccup disrupted his examination, knocking the Yromem Stone back out of sight as he shifted yet again. Emil burped again, his body learning to adjust and compensate for the new resident. He rubbed his Richter-bulge tenderly as he reminisced, feeling rather proud that he had provided such pleasure for Richter many times before. He suddenly wondered if Richter enjoyed being swallowed, if he enjoyed being inside him as much as Emil had enjoyed being inside Richter.

"H-hey, umm, Richter?"

"Yeah, Emil? What's up?"

"Umm… just now, when I was *hic* swallowing you… did you umm *hic*… D-did you like it?"

Richter hesitated a moment. "Being swallowed? Well, yeah, I guess… (Huh, yet another small section has been blacked out. What on earth for?) It felt… really nice actually… like a massage… a big, wet, full-body massage…"

Emil giggled. "**I'm glad you *hic* enjoyed it, Richter! Now I know why you *hic* love this so much! It feels *hic* ****_great_****! **" (More of that added text? What could it _possibly_ be hiding?)

Richter blushed. "**Yeah, I think I understand why you like it, too. I'm kind of embarrassed to admit this, but I was a bit nervous about letting you do this. I really wasn't sure what to expect, but, now that we finally have, I wish we had done this sooner.**" (_Again_? Really, who would do something like this to a perfectly innocent story?)

"**Well, at least we're doing it *hic* now, right?**" Emil rubbed his belly. "I enjoy making you happy, Richter… it's ungracious of you to feel embarrassed about *hic* something I intended to be pleasurable. All this time, you've been taking care of me… making sure _I_ was happy, making _me_ comfortable, worrying about _me_… Well, now it's _my_ turn to take care of _you_, Richter. I want you to enjoy this just as much as I enjoy it, alright? I want you to be comfortable…"

Richter shook his head with a smile. "Alright, alright… I'm sorry if I seemed ungrateful…" He blushed faintly at what he was about to admit. "I'm… I'm really glad you're thinking about me… and my comfort… So thanks… I really enjoyed the experience. All of it." He rubbed the soft lining of Emil's stomach as he spoke, closing his eyes. He could hear Emil's heartbeat, strong and steady; it was like a metronome that was luring him to sleep. Emil's hiccups had subsided, his breathing was slow and soft and gentle, like the sound of crashing waves on a distant shore. His eyelids grew heavy and his thoughts grew dim… He was so comfortable, he could think of nothing else except the thumping of Emil's heart, the rubs that came and stoked against his back again and again, the in and out of Emil's breath… He was just about to doze off when he heard the boy whispering his name.

"H-hey, Richter?"

"Yeah? What is it?" He yawned sleepily, stretching as he turned over inside Emil.

"Umm… I-I just thought of something… What if somebody comes and see's me like this?"

Richter laughed quietly. "What, you think I don't plan for these things? I bribed the people that run this place already… I guarantee we won't be bothered." He pat the wall of Emil's stomach comfortingly; he found it rather cute that Emil would worry about such things. Emil was just the type to worry; it didn't really matter about what… Richter found that sort of cautious nature rather endearing… it made him feel important, protective, it gave him a purpose.

Still not entirely comforted by the half-elf's answer, Emil amended his question. "F-for how long, Richter? We can't possibly stay like this forever…" The young blond shifted uneasily where he sat, debating whether or not this had been such a good idea. Richter chuckled softly, reassuring the boy once more.

"Everything is going to be alright, Emil, I promise… They've agreed to leave us to our affairs until we choose to depart, whenever that may be. I gave them quite a generous 'donation' in exchange for the privilege of using these hot springs however it suits us… Trust me, Emil; you have nothing to worry about." Emil calmed down somewhat at this assurance, but still wasn't 100% comfortable with the situation. Richter continued to rub against the teen's supple stomach, soothing the boy with the gentle massage. It took a few minutes, but eventually, he managed to put the blond in a pleasant mood once more.

Finally, Emil resigned himself to the little pool of steamy mineral water, letting it ease him into relaxation along with the steady rubs coming from within him. He looked up at the sky, the dark red hue of the sunset's finale was fading to the deep black of night, and Emil felt the night air getting slightly cooler. It was a nice contrast to the humid, hot air around him as he sat in the hot springs, and he enjoyed the breeze that passed over him every so often. He felt Richter's movements slow inside him, and he felt the half-elf stretch with a yawn. Emil himself felt rather drowsy, and for a moment, he wanted to drift off to sleep as well. However, Richter's stomach wasn't about to let it's job be neglected too, and it made a point of interjecting its opinion quite loudly. Emil stared down at his own enlarged midriff, frowning as he recognized the muffled growl within as Richter's stomach, that telltale gurgle that suggested he was quite a bit more than famished.

He heard Richter groan in response to his stomach's argument; he didn't really want to put their experience to such an abrupt end in order to satiate his own hunger. Emil, however, had a small sense of relief at the sound, it gave him an excuse to release Richter, to get himself out of that awkward situation, being so round and conspicuous in a potentially public place with that nagging urge to drift to sleep, compromising what little control he had over the situation. After one of those usual, polite arguments; Richter insisting that Emil didn't have to sacrifice his own pleasure just so he could sate his hunger, Emil countering with a similar statement, each perpetuating that duel martyring to convince the other that their comfort and pleasure was more significant than his own; Emil finally insisted that he would let Richter out, and that after a quick rinse, they would share a meal together in a private, secluded peace.

Richter reluctantly agreed, though his stomach seemed satisfied with the results. After Emil took a moment to position himself, he gave his plump belly one final, loving pat before he bowed his head and began the not-so-pleasant task of vomiting. It wasn't so much that it was difficult or uncomfortable for Emil; it was more like his body wasn't quite in sync with his brain. All the while he was trying to gag, his stomach had very different ideas. Though he may consciously have wanted to get Richter out as soon as possible, his stomach could care less whether its contents were a well-loved friend or a massive feast, all it knew was that it didn't want to give up that pleasant, filling bulge so easily. His first two attempts were unsuccessful, each ending with a frustrated moan and a ginger tummy rub to comfort the uncooperative muscles.

It was more than a little disconcerting to Richter, feeling that quivering of Emil's muscles and hearing the blond's groans. He had shrugged the first off as a fluke, a mere delay in the process due to lack of preparedness; but after the second failure, he began to worry that it might be more than simple inexperience. He stroked the boy's stomach comfortingly as he puzzled out what might be causing him difficulty. "Are you alright, Emil? Feels like you're having a little trouble out there… Do you need some help?"

Emil sat up, cradling his uncooperative belly in his lap. "I don't understand… I'm trying, Richter, I really am, but… I-I just can't seem to make myself throw up…"

"Maybe I'm in a bad position… let me get my bearings a moment… Are you leaning forward, or…?"

Emil comforted his aching stomach, his sore muscles still reprimanding him for attempting to empty them of their contents. "Right now? I'm sitting upright."

Richter nodded. He was definitely in the wrong position if that was true. Though he could not see, his vestibular sense told him that he was some degree of upside-down, and if that was the case, he certainly would be in an inconvenient position. He figured his lower back (if not that slightly _squishier_ area just below his lower back… ) was probably just around the opening of the esophagus, certainly not the easiest shape to squeeze through a narrow tube, no matter how stretchy it might be. He carefully maneuvered himself into somewhat of an upright position, though he had very little to go by in the way of landmarks and such. Finally, when he was reasonably sure that he was properly oriented, he gave Emil the go ahead to try releasing him again.

Emil knelt on all fours once more and prepared himself for what he expected would be another unpleasant ordeal. He stuck his hand into his mouth and reached toward the back of his throat, hoping that stimulating his gag reflex manually rather than relying on the Yromem Stone's power would be more effective. This third attempt brought success, and much to Emil's relief, he felt Richter begin to shift upward without any of the common unpleasantness that was associated with vomiting. The half-elf slid easily along the tight passage, and that gruesome taste of bile Emil had expected was nonexistent as Richter steadily began to emerge from his throat into his mouth.

Richter's eyes adjusted readily to the dim light as his head squished into Emil's mouth. His first instinct was to rub the slime from his eyelids and lashes, but he was quick to realize that his arms would be pinned at his sides for a long while as Emil continued to force him up. So he made the best of things, enjoying the feel of Emil's tongue against his face as he waited patiently for his arms to be free. The evening air was slightly crisp, and the steam that rose from the hot springs was more conspicuous than before, rising in great plumes that blew across the hazy surface of the water.

The process was incredibly slow-going to Emil who was still somewhat stressed by the idea that someone might walk up at any moment and see them like that, a man quite noticeably sliding out of a boy's mouth was not by any measures a common sight. It seemed to take an hour just to ease Richter out to his shoulders, and Emil wanted nothing more than to be rid of that nagging fear of being discovered. He leaned even farther down, leaning on his elbows as he gripped the redhead by the shoulders and began to speed up the process. He couldn't suppress a meek groan of discomfort as he forced his muscles to move before they were prepared, but he had achieved what he wanted; he had tugged Richter about a foot or so farther out of his mouth, it wouldn't be long until the embarrassing ordeal was over. Another firm pull, Richter's hands were free, and then, before he knew it, Richter had dragged himself the rest of the way out. His hands and feet were tingly and numb, he felt very far away, almost asleep, but his head was pounding and he was vaguely aware that Richter was calling his name.

Richter knelt over the blond, shaking him gently by the shoulders as he tried to arouse some sort of response from the youth. The boy lolled limply in his arms, moaning something incoherent, and Richter was desperately trying to determine what had managed to go wrong this time. He checked the boy's heart rate and breathing, discovering the immediate cause of the blond's delirium; hyperventilation. The half-elf's lips curled into a twisted smile, a grin that was contorted with vague frustration and even a little derision as he cradled the panicked blond. "You little idiot…", he chuckled, "I didn't tell you to go and hyperventilate… Calm down, dammit, I told you already: no one is going to come here looking for us, don't get so riled up. Come on, now, stop it." Richter sighed, knowing even as he spoke the words that Emil was too far gone to quit panicking. He drew the little human's face close to his and locked the blond's numb lips with his own. Eventually the boy's breathing slowed and he was drawn back from the hazy brink between consciousness and sleep. At last, when he felt the blond respond to his affections, Richter ended the embrace.

"Hey, you alright? You nearly passed out, what happened?" Emil blushed and hid his face in his hands.

"I-I'm sorry, Richter. I just… I got really self-conscious… I didn't want to be…" he paused, realizing that what he was about to say might sound offensive. He had _wanted_ to say that he 'didn't want to be seen like that' in a compromising position that most people wouldn't ever understand, but he didn't want Richter to think that he didn't want to be seen because he was embarrassed… Well, alright, he _was_ embarrassed, but not by Richter's company or anything like that… He just didn't want to feel that awkward, piercing glare from anyone…Well, really, no matter how he said it, it would sound wrong. He didn't know how to explain to Richter that he wasn't embarrassed to be seen like that per se, it was more like he'd be embarrassed to have to explain something like that. All he really wanted to say was that he didn't mind eating Richter, but he just didn't want to be confronted about it and…

Almost as if he were able to read Emil's thoughts, he gave the boy a tight hug, laughing winsomely. "Hey, that's okay. I wouldn't want to be caught like that either! Ha-ha-ha! Here, I'll tell you what, from now on, we'll only do this in complete privacy…" Emil's stomach, as though in partnership with Richter's, gave a low grumble as both hungry bellies simultaneously interrupted. "And we'll have to have some munchies, too…" Emil nodded, cuddling the redhead.

"Hey, umm, Richter…?"

"Yeah, Emil?"

"Umm… Wh-Which do you prefer? When you swallow me, or when I swallow you…?"

"Aww, damn, kid… I hate questions like these… You know I'm just going to say 'whichever you prefer, Emil' and that never gets us anywhere."

"Well, then, don't say that. Tell me how you really feel."

"Well, I…" Richter gritted his teeth, he didn't know why he still felt so insecure around Emil, why he was always so nervous to tell the boy the truth.; maybe because he was just so used to lying to Emil - so used to using deception to get what he needed because the truth had never worked - that now, he didn't expect the truth to bring the desired results. And yet, he felt compelled to tell Emil the truth; after all, he had been doing so for quite some time (despite a few minor fibs here and there), and it was much more comfortable to have an open and honest conversation… he took a deep breath and mentally braced himself for whatever might come next, hoping that his honest response would not disappoint Emil.

"I honestly prefer to eat you. Call it selfish, but I'd much rather be the one to do the eating than be the one who gets eaten. It's not that you're not good at it or that I don't enjoy it, but I really prefer…" Emil interrupted Richter's rambling with a tender kiss.

Their deep green irises met, and Emil smiled cheerfully up at his redheaded partner. "You know what? I prefer that, too…"

"R-really?! You actually _prefer_ being eaten?!" Richter gaped wide-eyed at the blond. He couldn't imagine how being 'prey' could be more enjoyable than being the 'predator'; based on his own experiences, he had never considered being eaten could even compare to the exquisite bliss of consuming someone else, and he doubted Emil's response almost immediately, thinking it another one of Emil's modest, submissive answers and not his true preference. Emil laughed at the half-elf's obvious surprise.

"Well, of course, you dummy! I wouldn't let you eat me otherwise!" Emil reached back and splashed a decent handful of water into Richter's face. The half-elf sputtered, looking even more astonished as Emil wriggled out of his arms, giggling impishly as he trotted off toward the bigger pool of water. Richter growled playfully, lunging after the boy as Emil dove into the steamy spring. They chased and splashed each other for what seemed like hours, almost forgetting their prior hunger for the twenty minutes they spent piffling about. It wasn't long, however, before they were reminded of their plans (by their stomachs, of course), and after another quick rinse in the shower room, they dressed in their usual attire and made their way into town, arm-in-arm with smiles on their faces.

When they arrived at the inn, the dinner hour had already passed, and the dining hall was completely empty. They ordered a modest meal and spilt a dessert with coffee afterward. A piano tinkled softly in the background, lending a nice ambiance to the fire-lit room. Richter sipped the last of his coffee, waiting for the check, just as two young women walked in, smelling of liquor and obviously quite drunk. The eldest, a blonde, was around Richter's age and the youngest, a brunette, seemed just a little older than Emil was.

Richter rolled his eyes, not really thinking much about the two girls until they walked up to the table. He tried to avoid eye contact as the girls made their way across the room, but being the only two people in a large room makes it a lot easier to be noticed, even by drunkards, and the two young women stumbled directly over to the table.

"_Heeeeey_, there! You two lookin' for a good time?!" The older woman blurted out.

"No. Please leave us be." Richter said bluntly. The two girls were leaning over on their table, and Richter loathed the invasion of his personal space.

"Aww, you're no fun… How about you, cutie? Wanna come up to our room for a little 'party'?!" The blonde turned her attention toward Emil, leaning dangerously close to his face. The boy stuttered, speechless and more than a little terrified by the overly imposing women. Richter clenched his fists in his lap, but tried once more to convince the two nuisances to leave.

"We said 'no', thank you, ladies. Please go away." Richter made an irritated shooing motion with his hand.

"You stay outta this, we're not talkin' to you. We're talkin' with your cute friend, and he didn't tell us 'no'. We're allowed to talk to whoever the hell we wanna, right, Liza?" The blonde nudged the brunette, who nearly stumbled over on top of Emil.

"Yeah, that's right! We can talk to whoever we wanna! C'mon, cutie, ditch this ol' buzz-kill and come party with us! Don't we look _much_ more fun than him?!" The two girls giggled self-absorbedly as though they found some sort of inside joke hilarious. Richter scowled at the two women as Emil continued to tremble nervously in his seat. The brunette, whom the blonde had called Liza, cupped Emil's face in her hand, leaning ever closer to his beet-red cheeks. "What's your name, hon? Don'tcha wanna come with us? We'll treat ya real nice, Becky and me… We'll let'cha do whatever ya want…" she giggled suggestively.

Richter couldn't take anymore. He slammed his fist onto the table, knocking his silverware onto the floor and shattering his plate. "Look, you two! We're not interested, you got that?! We want to be left _alone_! If you want partners to copulate with, seek them somewhere else! Loathsome slatterns, be gone! We want nothing to do with you!" He glared menacingly at the two women who seemed more stunned than frightened. He slapped Liza's hand away from Emil's face, though he was gentle enough not to harm her. "Go, what are you waiting for?! Away with you! Go and sober up somewhere, you floozies, and think about what you're doing with your lives, why don't you?! Just get out of my sight, go!"

The two women looked at each other for a moment and shrugged. "Well, ya didn't have to yell at us. C'mon, Becky, let's find somebody who knows how to have fun." They staggered arm-in-arm out of the dining hall, all the while throwing dirty looks at Richter over their shoulders as they left. Richter remained tense for a long while after they had left, muttering to himself as the waiter came by with their check.

The redhead pulled out his wallet and began to pay. "Ugh… damn trollops… women never can take a hint, can they?" He sifted through some denominations of coins before he handed the waiter the payment, including compensation for the plate he had broken and the tip, in exact change. The waiter bowed perfunctorily and strode away, leaving a receipt.

Emil cleared his throat, looking meekly across the table at his flustered companion. "Umm… R-Richter…? Th-thank you for telling those girls off like that. I-"

"Yeah, well I wouldn't have needed to chase them off like that if you had just been more assertive! Why didn't you say anything, Emil?!" Richter glared at the blond, fists once again clenched in his lap.

"I-I'm sorry…" Emil whimpered.

"Yeah, well you ought to be! Dammit, Emil, I can't constantly be defending you from the smallest of threats; if you had just said something they would have just left! _But no!_ You've got to sit there like a mute and make a bigger problem for me!"

"I-I'm _sorry!_ I really am, Richter! Wh-why are you _yelling_ at me?! I-I didn't m-mean to…!" Emil sobbed. Richter's frustrated expression quickly faded as he realized what he'd done. He went to Emil and gave him a delicate, comforting embrace.

"No, no… I'm sorry. It wasn't your fault. I'm sorry, I'm sorry… Please, don't… don't cry…" He pressed Emil close to his chest, cradling the young blond's head in his hand as he tried to stop the tears. "I'm sorry, Emil, I really am… I was just frustrated… I didn't mean to project my anger onto you like that… Please, forgive me… and please, don't cry…" Emil kept trembling in his arms, and Richter couldn't keep himself from sighing. Richter glanced around, then shook his head. _Why on earth should I feel self-conscious about this? It's not as though everyone is so concerned with our problems; I need to stop this childish fear of being judged… I love Emil, and if I'm going to be embarrassed about that, I'm not fit to be with him. I'm done lying to myself and the rest of the world… Let them think whatever they want, it can't hurt me… nothing can hurt me when I'm with him…_ Richter wrapped one arm around Emil's back and lifted the boy from his chair with the other. Pressing his face against Emil's, side-by-side, the half-elf whispered softly into the little human's ear. "Shh… Shh… It's alright… I love you… I didn't mean to yell at you… Please, don't feel bad about what I said. I didn't mean a word of it."

Emil nodded weakly against his shoulder, salty drops still running down his cheeks. "Do you want to talk about it back at the room, Emil?" The blond shrugged, still weeping. Richter waited a moment for a more definitive response. None came. "Alright, I'll take that as a 'yes'." Richter used his foot to nudge the chairs back under the table before he began to carry the sobbing boy out of the dining hall. He passed the receptionist's desk without flinching. She asked if they needed anything, but Richter didn't really listen. He began to climb the stairs, stroking Emil's hair, step-by-step, finally reaching the landing. He pulled the room key from his pocket, unlocking and opening their door awkwardly. He slipped quickly inside their room, shutting the door with his foot as he carried the weeping youth across the room.

He set Emil down on the bed and went back to lock their door. He turned back to find Emil lying limply on the bed, crying weakly, a forlorn, lonely weeping. Richter sighed, now and then muttering another apology as he sat beside the blond, rubbing his back gently as the boy still convulsed with sobs. After a while, Richter decided there was really nothing he could do to fix it, his efforts hadn't stopped or even stilled the tears, his efforts brought no visible comfort to the human. He began pulling off his cloak and unbuttoning his camise, preparing for what he figured would be an unpleasant and lonely sleep. He told Emil that he was feeling tired, that he was thinking about going to sleep, and he asked if Emil would do the same. The boy gave no response. Richter started feeling rather frustrated at himself now, wishing that he could just undo the whole thing. He hated to see Emil like this.

He thought of undressing the boy and tucking him in alongside (they had requested only one bed), but decided against the idea, he didn't want to upset Emil any more than he already was… He instead lifted the human out of the way as he pulled back the covers, laying the teen - fully clothed - beside him as he climbed into bed. He mumbled a "good night" that he was almost sure the blond didn't hear or care about and blew out the candle on the bedside table. He didn't think he'd ever get to sleep, but eventually, Richter's eyes closed and he was able to drift into a hazy, light doze.

After a couple of hours, Emil finally stopped crying; his eyes were painfully puffy and red after all that weeping. He felt exhausted, but try as he might, he couldn't fall asleep. He tossed and turned a few times over, but it did him no good. He undressed beneath the covers and kicked his clothes onto the floor, hoping that maybe he was just too warm to fall asleep, or that he was so used to sleeping without covers that the extra fabric was making him uncomfortable. It still wasn't working. He sighed and turned toward the sleeping redhead beside him. _Maybe I just need to get over this fight… maybe that's what's been keeping me awake…_ He thought about waking the redhead up, but decided not to. It had already been a hard day for Richter, what with the incident in the dining hall… He didn't want to disturb him. And yet, he felt lonely, very lonely, even though they were merely inches apart. Emil edged closer, leaning against the half-elf's chest.

Richter was roused from his shallow slumber by the slight touch and felt almost immediate relief, even though he hadn't yet entirely processed and recognized the touch as Emil's. His eyes fluttered open, and the dim light from the moon cast a weak bluish light into the room. Richter tilted his head to the side and, catching a glimpse of the boy's blond tufts, smiled. He ruffled the golden strands, which also alerted Emil that Richter was awake as well. He sat up and Richter eyed him with a mild uncertainty; there was still an awkwardness between them from the outburst in the diner.

"What's the matter, Emil; can't sleep?" The teen shook his head. "Yeah, me neither…" Richter stretched his arms and folded them behind his head. "You want to talk about it?" Emil shrugged and uncovered himself, sitting cross-legged as the red head followed his example. "I know you think I'm mad at you, Emil, but I'm really not… and either way, I should never have yelled at you. I know you have a hard time saying no to people… especially strangers… you had no reason to think that keeping quiet would encourage those women. I know you would have said something if you could have. I just… I got so frustrated at them… Maybe even jealous… the way they were going after you… it made me mad. And I guess for a moment, I thought maybe they interested you… and that's why you didn't say anything. So I…"

"It's alright, Richter. I understand… I… I should have been braver. I really should have said something. It would have been so much easier."

"Well, it doesn't really matter anymore… It can't be helped. I just hope I didn't upset you too much." Richter scooped the boy up in his arms and held him tightly. "I'm really sorry, Emil. You know I love you, right? I always will…"

"Yeah… I know… I love you, too, Richter… So much…" Emil hugged him back, pressing against the man's chest, listening to that familiar heartbeat. It soothed him, that closeness that he craved was slowly being fulfilled. He was too tired to be very shy or reserved in his conduct and he spoke more bluntly than usual as he addressed Richter. "I'm… very tired… and lonesome… I want to feel… close to you… Richter? Could you, no, _would you_ mind if… Will you swallow me?"

It took Richter a few moments to completely process the request, but once he had, he didn't hesitate to proceed. Emil felt an almost immediate calm as that wonted warmth began to envelope him, creeping from the top of his head down to his shoulders, past his chest, across his legs, over his calves, until finally, that moist heat completely ensconced him, and he was wrapped once more in that supple blanket of slick flesh that he longed for. At last, he felt relaxed, peaceful, safe once more in that haven that he had the unique pleasure of calling his own. The familiar touches from beyond the pliant walls eased him into a peaceful slumber as that rhythmic beating that echoed around him gave tempo to his pleasant dreams.

Richter smiled as he felt the little human grow still, his breath and heart slowed to a steady, restful pace. He gave his engorged midriff one final pat, laying back carefully, curling up under the covers. He, too, felt at peace now. The redhead was relieved of his anxiety all at once. He had appeased Emil, made up for his blunders that evening, he knew that everything was right again, and the proof was right there beneath the sheets; that warm, pink mass just below his pectorals, that inebriating fullness, that faint saltiness that still lingered on his lips… it was all proof that he and Emil were at ease. Their fight seemed so insignificant now… and Richter was grateful for that. Looking down at the bulge, Richter realized just how important Emil was to him, how precious a friend he was… no, more than a friend, but not a boyfriend either… it was something Richter really couldn't put a name on. All he knew was that the young blond who now slept peacefully inside of him was an irreplaceable, beloved partner, one he never wanted to be without. He decided that the next day, he would reveal everything to Emil and tell the cherished human exactly how much he loved him.

Richter slept peacefully that night, neither morning sun nor cockerel's crow could tear him from his dreams, only the tender touch of his beloved, that gentle stroking from within, could rouse him from his visions; visions of himself with Emil, intimately bound by fate for as long as they should live.


	5. Confessions and Proposals

Richter awoke the next morn to that pleasantly full sensation that he coveted. He smiled and caressed his belly, turning over gently as he sensed Emil's regular rubs, rather wishing to stay asleep a while longer, just to enjoy more of those pleasant dreams. But he couldn't ignore that tantalizing movement inside his stomach and he slowly peeled his eyes open to take in the morning. Golden light was pouring in through the curtains and raising a dim cloud of motes in the room. It was a cozy, welcoming scene that made the dawn much friendlier to a man who once loathed the sight. Perhaps it was Emil's presence that changed his perspective and taught him to love life again. He yawned and stretched, sitting up at last in preparation for the morning routine. Emil sat up inside him as well, stroking him more eagerly now that he knew Richter was definitely awake.

The redhead grinned down at his bloated middle and greeted it's occupant in a melodious and cheerful voice. "Good morning, Emil. Did you sleep well?"

"Very well, thanks to you, Richter." Emil giggled, and the response pleased Richter.

"Funny, I was thinking the same thing myself. I quite enjoy having you, Emil, you know that?" The half-elf massaged his distended middle and grinned as the human within wriggled against the touches. "It's kind of like symbiosis in a way, isn't it? We both get something pleasant from the relationship… Speaking of which… Can I, uh, talk to you about something?"

Emil was puzzled; Richter sounded a little earnest when he asked that… "S-sure, I guess… What about?"

"Nothing… just… a few things I've been meaning to tell you… Would you mind if I let you out first? I'd rather talk about this face-to-face, if you don't mind."

"Alright… That's fine by me, Richter."

Within a few minutes, Emil had emerged from Richter's belly, rinsed off in the shower and returned to Richter's side on the corner of the bed, wrapped in a fluffy white towel and eyes brimming with curiosity. Richter wrapped his arms around the blond, kissing his cheek and his neck. Once he was satisfied with that, Richter set the boy in front of him and, staring into his deep green eyes, he began.

"Emil… I think I'm finally ready to tell you about my powers…"

"Your powers? Before, you just said they were something you've lived with for a long time, that you didn't know much about them. I just assumed you were born with them, isn't that what you said?"

"Well, I hate to say it, but…"

"You lied again, didn't you?" Emil sighed. "I guess I should be used to that by now… What 'deep, dark secrets' were you trying to mask this time…?"

Richter laughed, "Well, I suppose I should be grateful that you aren't deeply offended by the fact that I lied this time, though I'm not sure sarcasm is much better… Rather than try to explain my reasons, I'll just skip the excuses and get straight to the point… After that, I'm sure you can form your own theories about why I tried to hide what I'm about to reveal." He took a deep breath and began a story he never thought he'd reveal to anyone.

"Years ago, when I was a young researcher at the Sybak Research Academy, I was experimenting with a project I called 'Endless Mana'…"

"Endless Mana…?" Emil echoed.

"Yeah, it was a project designed to find a renewable source of mana, so to speak. My goal was to find some way of generating usable mana from monsters, kind of like a battery. But, through my experiments, I came across something quite unexpected. It was a sort of mana metabolic conservation genome present in some monsters. I happened upon it quite by accident; I discovered there were particular monsters that I could not extract mana from though they showed proficiency in magic capabilities. I figured out that these same monsters also had the ability to utilize this mana metabolism and I became quite fascinated with it. I started trying to engineer mice with the same genome and after a few trial runs, I finally isolated the strand of DNA responsible for that gene and inserted it into the mitochondria of a few pregnant lab mice. I was rather disappointed that neither the mothers nor the first and second-generation offspring showed the desired trait, but the third generation offspring were magnificent specimens indeed. They not only showed tremendous mana metabolism, but physical metabolism as well; I could go without feeding them for well over 6 weeks and they were as energetic as ever.

"As you can imagine, I was thrilled with my discovery. I tampered with the genetic code a bit on the mice that had finally adopted the metabolic traits I sought and eventually developed a serum that could mutate the DNA in mice 3 days after the injection. After I had made sure it had no harmful side effects and many generations of mice had lived painless lives, I presented my findings to the head of the Research Committee. I was eager to try the experiment on a human test subject, and had it gone properly, I'm sure it would have made historic strides toward more efficient mana usage for Tethe'allans and eventually for Sylvaranti once the two worlds were united. Unfortunately, they had very different ideas…"

"Wh-what do you mean, Richter, what happened?" Emil sat attentively, body tense and trembling, almost as if he were living the story that was being told.

"You know how we half-elves were persecuted and only valued for our intelligence? Well, apparently, they took "human test subject" a little too literally, and took offense to it at that. They called me an insolent, barbaric half-breed. They cursed me for my impudence: how dare I, a lesser race, suggest that my research be tested on humans? They stormed my lab, and as I tried to protect my experiment, they decided to make an example of me. They strapped me down, in that cursed basement laboratory, and they injected me with a sample of the experimental DNA. At first, I felt nothing, no difference… but I was relieved a little too soon. That night, I underwent excruciating pain, every muscle in my body convulsed, every nerve sent only signals of pain throughout my body. The following morning, I had changed… I no longer felt desire for food and the Research Committee soon discovered this as well. As you can imagine, their cruelty did not stop there; they found this rather advantageous, you see, not having to feed us as they normally would, and they were eager to subject my other colleagues to it. Therefore, I did the only reasonable thing I could do. I destroyed all my research, every document, every vial, every record of the experiment, including the mice. The only evidence left was me, and I was damn near suicide to prevent them from doing terrible things with my research.

"But they were expecting that, and they kept me alive, but only just, hoping to wring out any information they could about the experiment from me. They got by treating me like the mice, feeding me once every two weeks or so, at first, to seem generous. But they kept pushing it… Every month, then every two months, slowly they began to starve answers out of me. Soon, I was at my wits end, I was about to reveal everything just to make the damned torture stop. True, I could survive longer without food, but it was more like dying of starvation was drawn out, painfully extended… Then, my miracle came. The two worlds were merged, the individuals responsible for the cruelty at the Academy were replaced, and half-elves ceased being persecuted… or at least, the severity was lessened. We were freed from our enslavement there in the basement of that Academy, but several of us stayed to complete our research. As for myself, I was hell bent on coming up with some way to reverse what they'd done to me. But… even though Aster and I were good friends, pretty much since we first met at the Academy, I never told him what had happened. At first, I avoided him entirely; I holed myself up with my research and rarely spoke to him if we happened to pass in the halls. He grew quite concerned for my wellbeing and eventually he confronted me. I had told him everything was fine, I was just overloaded with work, but he didn't really buy that answer. Still, he left me to my devices as I had asked. However, he was the curious sort, and one day he caught a glimpse of my notes as I passed him in the lab.

"I still remember his exact words… 'Researching monsters?! How interesting! I did a thesis on them a month or so ago. Any chance you'd want some help?' I turned him down countless times, but he kept insisting. Eventually, I let him observe me, and gradually I warmed up to him again. It wasn't long before we were talking and laughing like we used to. Finally, I decided I would let him help me with my research. I didn't want to have to tell him about what had happened to me, about why I was trying to find a way to speed up metabolism in mice, but I was prepared to if I needed to. I just felt it was wrong to deny his help when he seemed so intent on being useful. At the time, I had reached a dead end in the experiment and I was admittedly just grasping at straws, thinking that maybe if he helped out, I'd make some progress. To my surprise, he helped quite willingly, and didn't ask me about the motivation behind the experiment. I was rather relieved by that, and I was even more relieved when his aid yielded results. I won't go into extensive detail, but using the same techniques as before, I had recreated the serum and the mana metabolic mice. Then, with Aster's help, I was able to develop an 'antiserum', so to speak, and it seemed to work quite well on the mice. Unfortunately, mice cannot speak. I had no way of knowing exactly how it countered the effects of the metabolic injection… As I discovered shortly after using it on myself, it does not really rid you of the original effects of the first genetic flux, rather, it develops a new and opposite genetic flux as well…one that speeds metabolism and as a result increases the amount of energy that can be consumed. Nevertheless, I never let on around Aster… He seemed so happy when he thought he had helped me with whatever my experiment was. So I pretended that my problems really were all solved, that our experiment was a success, continuing my research alongside Aster. Eventually, we began researching Ratatosk. And you know the rest of my story from there.

"Looking back on it now, I think somehow he always knew… I think he knew why I was researching metabolism. I feel so stupid for not noticing it then, but now, I remember quite distinctly… on the day we finally created a successful antiserum, he had smiled and said 'we finally found a cure'… I had thought nothing of it at the time, but only now do I realize, I was the only one to whom this genetic flux was an affliction, only to me was this antiserum a cure for my curse… Somehow, he knew…"

Emil nodded. "I see… So it was Aster that helped you open up again. It was Aster that helped you through that difficult time in your life. And then Ratatosk took him from you…" Emil sounded remorseful, still blaming himself for Ratatosk's sins.

Richter took Emil by the hands. "Yes… And his death was a difficult thing for me to get over. And that's why you're so important to me."

"Because I remind you of Aster…" Emil sulked gloomily in his seat. So the truth had come out at last, had it? Richter loved Aster, not him… that's just how it was, how it always had been.

Richter grabbed Emil firmly by the shoulders, turning the boy's face back in his direction. "I won't lie… at first, that was what grabbed my attention. You look very much like him. But… that is not the reason I love you. True, Aster helped me overcome my feelings about humans, that hatred and resentment, but you did a much more precious thing: you helped me overcome my feelings about Aster… and feelings about myself. If it weren't for you, I might still be grieving, wasting my life in tribute to someone who will never return, I nearly sold my soul to the demons beyond the Ginnungagap because I just couldn't get over his death. You absolved me of my regrets and gave me a new reason to live. You helped me feel what I thought I had long forgotten, you brought me joy again, happiness, love. You taught me that my powers aren't a curse, they're a gift… You showed me what it really means to be brave… You helped me to see all the good things in myself and in others, and I'm far from perfect, but I'm growing because of you. That's why I need you, to help me continue on this path, to become a better person. You evoke feelings in me that I've never experienced before, such joy, such desire, such passion and fervor, such profound emotions… I can't live without that, anymore. Emil, I never want to be without you. I want you to promise me… Promise me that you'll never leave me, that you'll forever be mine. Please, just tell me that you'll always love me and I swear to you, I'll devote my entire being to you. You mean everything to me, Emil… I want to be together with you, always."

Emil gripped Richter tightly, pulling him in. He engaged Richter in a passionate kiss and continued it for several minutes. They broke away with a sigh and a smile. "I've wanted to ask you to do the same for a long time, Richter." Emil's eyes shone brilliantly, the morning light made them seem to glow passionately and bright as he spoke. "I accept, Richter; and I promise to be yours, forever…"

Richter smiled, but it was an atypical, profound and foreign smile that Emil had never seen before. It was not amusement or contentment, neither pleased nor cheery; it was more than affection, more than joy, it was something entirely new. It was passionate, vibrant, exuberant, ecstatic, and euphoric, there were no precise words that entirely described it, but Emil could tell - though he could not label the expression - that his acceptance had given Richter what he had longed for: fulfillment. That enraptured glow that lit the half-elf's eyes made Emil's heart pound; he was suddenly aware of a change in his own feelings. That meek, shy, childish sense of love he had practiced before had evolved and grown into something more. The concept of individual feelings had left him, his chest felt heavy with this new passion. Those thoughts he once had that separated "he" and "I", which differentiated "his feelings" from "my feelings" were gone. Now, for the first time, it was "we", and it was this new sense of unity that stirred Emil.

Emil brushed against Richter's chest, leaning his head against the man's shoulder and whispering into his ear. "We'll always be together from now on… I promise you… For as long as you'll have me, I'll be by your side… All I ask for in return is your love. It's all I ever wanted."

Richter's eyes were moist and glistening as he held the teen just a little tighter. "Then it shall be forever… because I'll never stop loving you." Richter's hands drifted toward Emil's waist, fondling the edge of the towel that wrapped the blond's lower body. He undid the loose knot and the fluffy white cloth sloughed off to reveal Emil's obvious eagerness. Emil reciprocated the gesture - tugging down the man's boxers - accepting Richter's offer, but with a surprising twist. He gently forced the redhead down, caressing his cheek with his delicate fingers as he hovered over him. Richter was a little surprised by the gesture, but did not resist, instead welcoming the boy's bold advance; he rather liked this new display of courage.

Emil was just as surprised by the half-elf's willingness, he was almost certain Richter would have taken control the instant he had hit the pillows, nearly positive that the redhead would have pulled him down right after and rolled on top; Emil was suddenly flattered by Richter's resignation of power. The blond blushed, eyes drifting over Richter's beautiful, supine figure. The redhead merely smiled, still without objection as the blond positioned himself **...** (As you read, you are horrified to find the page has been ripped at the most inconvenient place! You scramble frantically, searching for the rest, expecting some juicy, salacious material. You discover a scrap of paper, which reads "I am Jyggalag. I rule all!" You try turning the paper over, only to find a similar script reading: "I am the Madgod, _I_ rule all! You will never take this bawdy tale from me!" You crumple the paper and cast it aside, and continue reading, disappointed.)

There was heat and passion and glorious release. The two formed a union that cannot be described, and one that would take much too long to even begin to try. Behind closed doors, with a key comfortingly near to remind them of their privacy, they were free to express themselves and their newly cemented bond. On damp sheets and twisted covers, they lay together, spooning like your average couple, but to them, it was much more than simple affectionate cuddling. To them, this was completion, this was the end of the beginning. They had gone from friends to companions and from companions to lovers. Now they were waving goodbye to being just lovers and preparing for that next step.

The feeling of each other's warm bodies made both feel like crying. It was an emotion stronger than happiness, but different from love. That simple knowledge, that feeling of closeness and unity with another, that sudden insight of life and realization that they were individuals and yet one in the same, that molding of unique and unified… they just wanted to melt into one another, merge into a single entity because that was the only way they could be closer… That ecstasy that makes you want to kill yourself because you feel immortal, that was what they were experiencing.

When at last the delayed sensation of hunger gripped them, they released each other, garbed themselves, and meandered back down to the dining hall. It was boisterous and loud as the room was jam packed with guests, all of which were eating a hearty breakfast before heading out, just like Emil and Richter. They were seated at a booth under a bright painting of a cascading waterfall. They ordered in almost a celebratory manner; Richter, allowing himself to go a little wild, ordered a short stack and hash browns in addition to his usual morning meal of bacon and eggs, and Emil ordered a stack of blueberry pancakes and a fruit parfait. The waitress curtsied perfunctorily and disappeared between the crowded tables as she left to fetch their drinks.

Richter was remarkably jovial, and not just for a man whose usual demeanor was heinously introverted. He talked easily and freely with Emil, almost as though he were another person entirely. He had finally adjusted to the less than private atmosphere and was bold enough to venture a hand under the table and across to Emil's thigh. His broad fingers were greeted by Emil's, soft and warm, and it made Richter feel even more at home in the boy's soft green gaze. Their food and beverages arrived, and with the same ceremonious fervor, they tucked in to their meals.

While they ate, Richter could think of nothing other than Emil. That morning, they had made a tremendous transition in their relationship… and yet… Richter couldn't help but feel that transition was not yet complete. While he thought it was a silly tradition, he couldn't help but feel it held some sort of importance, some finality, there was just something about it that said "we're together now, and that's that." True, the commitment they had made was all that mattered, the words they had spoken had more meaning than the pointless gesture expressed by the tradition - Richter rather thought it showed a possessiveness that he found pompous - but he couldn't help feeling that enacting this ridiculous tradition would add the icing to an already wonderful cake.

While the tradition of ring giving was already ridiculous enough, a more ridiculous branch-tradition was to make your proposal in a grandiose, flamboyant manner. All the pomp and circumstance surrounding the act of proposing made it seem a joke, and yet the idea of what proposing was meant to represent, the union between two people, was one that Richter coveted. He dug around in his pocket as he polished off his short stack, finally locating an electrum ring he had picked up a year back. Electrum… a union of gold and silver… it would do nicely. He slipped it onto his finger to keep it - quite literally - close at hand while he waited for the right moment to present itself.

He smiled to himself as he watched Emil, imagining how the boy would react to the proposal. He tried to think of the best way to go about it. He wanted to do it as soon as possible, but discreetly. He had heard of several proposal methods, gleaning bits of information from various conversations throughout the years, but he had never given them much though. Many of them involved flagrant displays of wealth, clever distractions and convoluted, round about techniques, or puerile, sappy, and poorly written love poetry. None of these suited Richter, nor were they appropriate for the time and place. Then, it struck Richter, something that was more his style, clever, endearing, and, most importantly, perfect for such an impromptu proposal. Still, now was not quite the moment, so Richter bided his time, continuing to work on his plate of eggs.

Emil had started on his fruit parfait, and was quite absorbed in it, enjoying it so much that he hadn't noticed the little glob of whipped cream at the corner of his mouth. However, Richter _had_ noticed it, and he reached across the table as subtly as he could, wiping up the sweet white froth and cleaning the creamy morsel off of his fingers with a quick sweep of his tongue. Emil, a bit surprised by the gesture, tested the redhead again, slowly spooning another bite of parfait to his lips, purposely smudging a bit of whipped cream at the corner of his mouth and making certain that Richter saw it. Richter stifled a laugh and again mopped up the cool cream, being extra slow and flirtatious as he sucked the sweet off his finger. The next thing he knew, Emil was directing a spoonful of the dessert toward him. Just as Richter opened his mouth to accept the offer, Emil thrust the mouthful of dessert into his own maw, casting the half-elf a teasing, playful look out of the corners of his eyes as he chewed happily on the sweet blend of strawberries, blueberries, and vanilla ice cream.

Richter chuckled under his breath as Emil swung another tempting morsel under nose. Though he expected the blond to pull away again, Richter opened his mouth and was pleasantly surprised when Emil allowed him to take the mouthful of saccharine dessert from the spoon without any tricks. The combination of the treacle and tart syrup, the sweet ice cream and fruit, the fluffy whipped cream and the refreshing coolness it left on his palate practically made Richter melt in his seat. Though it was modest in comparison to the parfait, the redhead offered Emil a generous forkful of his own meal. Emil accepted it eagerly and offered up a second spoonful of parfait in return.

They went on feeding each other that way for some time, enjoying the bonding experience. Before long, their plates were cleared and they patiently awaited their check. As they made conversation, Richter took the opportunity to enact his plan. While Emil was engrossed in discussing the next place they should visit, Richter imperceptibly reached across the table, not breaking eye contact, and deftly dropped the electrum ring into Emil's glass. The only benefit of the clamor that surrounded them in the diner was that it disguised the faint plink of the ring hitting the bottom of the glass. Satisfied that his maneuver had remained covert, Richter leaned back against the plush leather bench of the booth and contentedly sipped his coffee.

Now, I'm sure you've all experienced the phenomena where you walk side by side with someone and you suddenly fall in stride with them or a similar marvel where you watch someone yawn and you can't help but do the same. This same subconscious synchronization between the human and half-elf stirred Emil into drinking as well. Richter watched expectantly as Emil brought the glass up to his lips, tilted it back, took a few brisk swallows… Richter's eyes widened as Emil finished off the glass of orange juice with one last gulp and set the glass back on the table, completely empty.

Richter pinched the bridge of his nose, snickering against the palm of his hand as he tried to muffle his laughter. "Well," the redhead chuckled, "I guess that means you accept, then!"

Emil stared at Richter in bewilderment. "Accept? Accept what?"

Richter removed his glasses to wipe laughter-born tears from his eyes. "Well, I suppose it was a stupid idea from the beginning; I should have foreseen something like this would happen… I was trying to be clever I suppose. I intended to give you a ring as a sort of 'proposal'… You just swallowed it."

Emil clasped his hands over his mouth in disbelief. "I-I _did_?! I'm sorry, I didn't realize…!"

"It's alright, it was my fault. You had no way of knowing there was something in your drink… If it were me, I probably would have done the same thing. Don't worry about it, you'll probably pass it in a day, nothing to be too concerned about."

"Oh, I'm not worried per se… I just would have liked to see it. After all, if I'm going to accept the proposal, I'd like to at least see the ring."

Richter scoffed. "What, are you going to refuse me if it's a cheap ring or something?"

"Is it a cheap ring?" Emil raised an eyebrow.

"Of course not! What do you take me for, a skinflint?"

"Well, you have nothing to worry about, then!" Emil smirked.

"If I'm proposing to a gold digger, I most certainly _do_ have something to worry about!" Richter teased.

The waitress returned with their check and Richter paid with his usual precision. Richter finished what remained of his coffee, still enjoying the playful back and forth banter he was having with Emil.

"Really, Richter, you think that little of me? What on earth would I spend your money on, anyway?"

Richter thought for a long while… "You know… I have absolutely no idea!" Richter laughed.

"Exactly. Now then…" Emil leaned back in his seat, stroking his stomach. "Why don't we go back up to the room and…", he lowered his tone to a whisper, "…we can play doctor~" The blond raised his eyebrows suggestively.

Richter rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Well, you know… We gastrologists charge a lot for an examination. How's a poor boy like you going to pay me?" The half-elf shot the boy a sly grin.

The blond batted his eyelashes. "You seem like a reasonable man, 'Dr. Abend'… I'm sure we can negotiate and reach _some_ sort of agreement…" Emil said with a sultry, lilting whisper.

"Very well," replied the redhead, "Let's get on with it then." They both stood and walked hurriedly from the diner. Emil dashed excitedly up the stairs as Richter followed close behind, tugging off his bolo tie and unbuttoning his shirt with a broad, eager grin. They rushed into their room, locking the door tightly in preparation for their debauchery. Emil began removing his own clothing at this point as Richter started to undo his pants. Once they were both bare-skinned except for their boxers, they began.

"Well, then… What seems to be the trouble, Castagnier?" The half-elf breathed lustily down the young male's neck as he seated the blond in his lap.

"Oh, Doctor Abend… I accidentally swallowed a _very_ important ring, and I simply must get it back as soon as possible." The little human cooed back to the redhead as he rubbed his cheek against the man's well toned chest.

"I see. How unfortunate that I don't have any of my surgical equipment… Oh, well, I suppose I'll just have to do this job by hand." Richter slid off the bed and motioned for Emil to lie on his stomach. Emil did so, propping his head up in the palms of his hands. "Alright, now… Open wide." Richter purred. Emil dropped his jaw and admitted Richter's long, slender digits. The blond hummed happily as he sucked on the man's hands, enjoying their natural saltiness for the first time. After a few moments, Emil swallowed, pulling Richter's wrists into his mouth as he did. He gazed into Richter's eyes as he continued to creep along the length of the half-elf's arms, smile widening when at last he felt the redhead's hands squish into his stomach.

"Fascinating. I've never had a patient with such an amazing ability… if only I could examine your insides thoroughly with my own eyes… it's such an intriguing power." It was a coded signal for Emil to continue swallowing, and the boy did not hesitate to resume the pleasurable endeavor. While he might have been uncomfortable at the hot springs, Emil was more than eager within the confines of a locked room and he slurped up the redhead with obvious zeal. It wasn't long before Emil felt Richter's head slide into his belly, and the redhead began his search.

At first, he groped blindly in the dark, fingers digging through partially digested breakfast material as he searched for the ring. The sweet yet pungent smell around him was not unpleasant, but it was a bit distracting while Richter felt around in the moist, gooey darkness. Eventually, a faint familiar glow caught his eye. He pulled it out of the slushy mixture that surrounded it, wiping the residual grime off to reveal the tiny runes engraved on the surface of the Yromem Stone. Using it's dim light, he sifted through the chyme that occupied Emil's stomach.

Meanwhile, Emil enjoyed the subtle flavor of the half-elf, whose toned abs currently occupied plenty of space in his mouth. It took all of Emil's self-control to keep himself from gulping down the rest of the redhead. While he did enjoy satisfying Richter, he still had to admit that having the half-elf taking up space in his plump belly was rather enjoyable as well. This, however, was not the appropriate time for such things; after all, he didn't want to waste any of the precious breakfast that Richter had so graciously paid for, and knowing that he still did not possess Richter's prowess at controlling the rate and target of his metabolism, he didn't want to take any risks. So he lay on the bed and moaned as he enjoyed the succulent taste of the older male in his mouth and the gentle rubs that were produced in his engorged belly as the redhead continued to dig for the ring.

Finally, catching a glimpse of the elusive electrum band, betrayed by the faint glint of reflected light as the Yromem Stone cast it's dim glow across it, Richter scooped it up out of the sludge and slipped it onto his finger. Wiping what he could manage of the partially digested goop off of his arms, he dropped the Yromem Stone back into the mire and gave Emil's stomach one final pat. "Mission complete. I've done all the 'research' I can in here, and I've recovered your precious ring. Time for you to 'compensate' me…" Emil let out a muffled giggle and throaty sound of affirmation as he slowly began to ease the redhead back out of his mouth.

Once he was out, Richter made quick use of the shower and returned to his eager blond companion in all his nude glory. He got down on one knee and offered up the ring. "Emil Castagnier…" Richter slipped the ring onto Emil's finger as he spoke. "Will you be my partner?" Emil gazed at the modest ring on his finger, but to him it was infinitely valuable.

He gave the redhead an enthusiastic embrace, holding his head against his bosom as he spoke with wavering voice, overjoyed. "Yes! Yes, of course I will!" That was it, that one final, fickle gesture had done it. At last, it was official, they were partners, walking down the path of life together… Tears of joy ran down Emil's cheeks and he held tightly to his lover. Richter nuzzled the blond fondly. When at last the boy released him, Richter straightened up and smirked at the little human.

"Well, that's all well and good… but you still need to pay the doctor!" The half-elf growled playfully as he lunged at Emil. They toppled over on the bed and Richter gently pinned the boy down. The blond giggled as the redhead forcefully removed his boxers.

"Oh, Doctor… Please be gentle." Emil winked up at the half-elf.

"Boy, I don't do 'gentle'…" Richter snarled, a dark grin creasing his face. The human smiled approvingly in response**...** (Yet another section has been blacked out and replaced with nonsensical ranting. "Cheese, for everyone!") For the second time that morning, they lay in a sweaty, tangled heap, panting against each other in pure, primal bliss.

"You're amazing…" Richter breathed against Emil's damp nape as the two males cuddled side-by-side.

"No, _you're_ amazing…" Emil whispered back. "You really are… and you're a wonderful partner."

"So are you… a magnificent partner…" Richter buried his face in Emil's soft, golden hair.

"I love you so much, Richter" Emil sighed as he clasped Richter's hands tightly in his own.

"I love you, too, Emil… And I always will."


	6. Doubts and Revelations

This brings us back to the present, where we last left Richter and Emil, snoozing in the open air of the Sylvarant fields. Emil had since purchased Richter a matching ring, and they had spent many peaceful days and nights together and just as many exciting adventures together as partners. Their passion was still fresh and young.

Richter yawned lazily, rubbing his eyes as bright sunlight poured through the lush green leaves that hung overhead. Emil draped limply over his midriff, sleeping peacefully. The redhead smiled and ruffled the youth's blond tufts. The touch woke Emil from his slumber, and his eyes slowly fluttered open as he stretched his limbs. He smiled up at the half-elf, greeting him with a familiar "good morning" though it was already afternoon. Richter mirrored the expression, sitting upright and cracking his stiff neck with a quick twist of his head.

"So, Richter, I guess we ought to be going now, huh?" The blond inquired as he began to refasten his supplies to his belt.

"Oh, I think we can spare a little more time here for a little _snack_ before we go…" A lecherous grin spread across the half-elf's face as he pressed close behind Emil, nibbling Emil's neck. The boy squealed and giggled as he forced Richter off of him.

"Oh, no, absolutely not! You've done quite enough _snacking_ today!" Emil smiled playfully back at the half-elf, but his voice was serious and stern: he wasn't going to let Richter have his way _all_ the time.

Richter folded his arms and scoffed. "Only once this morning! That's not a lot."

"I think once a day is plenty! Besides…" Emil's playful expression curled into a devious, lascivious smirk that was quite uncharacteristic of him. "You've swallowed me four times in a row. If there's going to be any more snacking at all today, _I'm_ the one who's going to be doing it!" He charged at the man, licking his lips as he reached for the half-elf's collar. The redhead caught him with a single outstretched hand, stopping the boy in his tracks with outstretched fingers mere inches from the older male's cloak.

"Now, now, Emil, You shall have your turn… but you must earn it." The half-elf cooed as Emil still continued to struggle, grasping at the air between himself and Richter.

"Since when?!" Emil growled, frustrated that the half-elf had a reach that surpassed his own.

"Since I just decided right this second…", Richter purred smugly. "Come now, I'm offering you a chance at this! After all, we both know if I didn't let you, you wouldn't be able to eat me."

"Maybe so, but we both know if I could just figure out more about how to use this stone's power, you'd be no mach for me!"

The redhead laughed hysterically. "Perhaps, but I still doubt it." He released is grip on the blond, giving him a brief moment of false hope before pinning both the boy's arms to his sides with a tight embrace. "It's not that you're not strong… I'm just a little more… _experienced_ than you."

Emil sighed. "Tch, yeah, right… Which is why I kicked your butt at the Ginnungagap."

"Alright, experienced may not be the best word… I guess, I'm just a little more confident in my actions, more assertive… At least. I'm usually more confident… On the other hand, whenever you exude confidence and will-power, it tends to surpass my own…"

Emil blinked up at him. _What does he even mean by that?_

"I guess I shouldn't underestimate you, even an impulsive whim like this could evoke that kind of power in you… The kind that destroys demons and slaughters dragons."

"Wait… Are you saying that when I'm really determined I'm… stronger?"

Richter grinned. "Oh, crap, I've said too much!" He laughed whimsically and ruffled the blond's hair as though to say 'yes, that's exactly what I mean'.

"Pfft… Alright then, Mr. Cryptic… you say I've got to 'earn my chance'… What did you have in mind?" His emerald eyes narrowed and a confident grin formed on his lips.

"Oh, my… I'm really screwed… I've seen that look before…" Richter grinned. "Well, alright. I do owe you a chance at least. I'll give you a thirty second head-start… If you can evade my pursuit and make it to… let's say that tree over there." Richter pointed out a rather large tree that was some distance across the field, quite detached from the surrounding forest, "If you can make it there, I'll let you swallow me. But if I catch you before that…" Richter licked his lips with a randy smirk. "Well, I think you know what I'll do…"

"Sounds an awful lot like tag to me…" Emil mused with a sardonic leer. "Aren't we a bit too old to be playing that?"

"I _could_ just eat you now if you prefer."

"No, thanks. I'd rather test your little theory about my determination, if you don't mind."

"Very well…" Richter released Emil. "Go."

Emil turned on his heels and began dashing through the sparse trees toward the one Richter had pointed to, growing more and more excited as he heard Richter's distant countdown grow fainter. His enthusiasm was short-lived, however, because moments after Richter had shouted out the last one of his thirty seconds, he could see the half-elf drawing closer and closer behind him. As he grew more and more anxious at the redhead's approach, his mind began to race as he struggled to find a way to escape Richter's encroaching grasp.

Finally, in a last-ditch effort to make an exodus from the eminent fate that closed in on him, Emil ducked into a thicket of dense trees. To his surprise, he managed to evade Richter, who fell behind almost instantly as he struggled to navigate through the thick grove of trees. One negative repercussion Emil had failed to foresee was that he had absolutely no idea where he was anymore. The green canopy overhead blotted out most of the sunlight, but the few little trickles of the warm, golden radiance that poured through the layered leaves gave Emil small comfort in knowing that he at least knew where west ought to be. He continued cautiously through the woods, keeping an eye out for any monsters as well as any sign of Richter. He soon came across a faded path among the twisted roots of the forest floor, much to his surprise. He decided to follow it, since it was pretty much going the same direction he was headed anyway. _At the very least,_ he thought, _it should lead me out of this forest._

He hadn't taken more than a few steps along the path before he heard a twig snap a short distance behind him. He put his hand on the hilt of the sword, but did not draw it, just in case the sound had been caused by Richter; he didn't want this childish game to end in fatality. Then again, if it were a monster, Emil was at a loss. If he needed Richter's help, chances were the half-elf might not make it to his side before the monster had it's jaws around his throat. Emil tensed himself, trying to remain calm by taking a shaky breath to steady himself. No reason to worry, it was probably Richter… right?

Emil focused intently on the shadowy maze of trees from which the snap had come. He tightened his grip on his sword, hoping more than anything that the rustling coming toward him was just a small woodland animal and anything but a monster.

"Emil?!" A silhouette detached itself from the murky darkness of the brush, calling out to him in a familiar voice. Two light blue eyes, wide with amazement, met Emil's as Marta - Emil's old traveling companion - emerged from the tangle of trunks.

"It _is_ you! Emil!" She ran over and hugged Emil, who was only somewhat comforted by her presence. It had been a long time, and needless to say, whatever feelings he had once held for her were long since vanished. In fact, Emil had quite forgotten her after all that had happened between himself and Richter since they met up after their victory together with Ratatosk at the door to Nifelheim.

"M-Marta?!" Emil gaped at the girl who had her arms securely wrapped around his waist.

"Oh, Emil! I haven't seen you in _so_ long! I've missed you! Where have you been all this time?!"

"I-I… Well, I umm…" Emil shifted uneasily in Marta's arms, unsure of what to say to her.

"I've been looking everywhere for you! I thought you promised we'd meet up in Palmacosta again someday! Remember?! You promised me!" Emil vaguely remembered making some sort of promise to her when they had separated after their last adventure together a very long time ago, but he didn't remember what his exact words had been.

"Well, umm… I just…" He tried to come up with some sort of excuse for why he'd forgotten and what he'd been doing for so long.

"Never mind, that doesn't matter now." Marta interrupted, "All that matters is that we're together again…" She still held onto Emil, which disturbed him beyond words. He was already quite used to being with Richter, and was more than dedicated to him, and he felt almost as though letting Marta hold him was some sort of sin, a betrayal of Richter's trust and affection. But, as usual, he was unable to form any sort of verbal or physical protest against it, and even if he had tried, Marta surely would have drowned it out with her ceaseless chatter.

Marta continued to spout out the lovesick drivel that she had repeated so often about loving Emil, wanting to marry him, missing him, all their adventures, and Emil chewed on his lip, feeling more than awkward and anxious as he searched for a way out of this situation. He tried to tune out as much of what Marta was saying as he could manage, scanning his surroundings searching for an escape route.

"- and I hadn't seen any trace of you for so long, I almost thought you'd found someone else and completely forgotten about me! But now we can be together! Just the two of us, like our adventures before!" She took Emil by the hands, jumping up and down as she danced around with him, dragging him around in an awkward circle, giggling ecstatically, that is, until she saw his ring.

She stopped in her tracks. "Emil, why are you wearing your ring like that?" She stared at the ring for a long moment.

"Uh, w-what do you mean?" Emil stammered, blushing as she took a closer inspection. "What's wrong with the way I'm wearing my ring?"

Marta shrugged with a nervous giggle. "Oh, it's nothing… it's just… well, you're wearing it on _that_ finger. Wearing it on your left ring finger like that, it kind of looks like a wedding ring or something!" She stared up at Emil with uncertain eyes. "I-it's not… right?"

Emil dug the toe of his shoe into the hard packed earth beneath him as he averted his gaze.

Marta dropped Emil's hands dully. "Emil…? It's _not_ a wedding ring, right?" She stared at him with doubt and fear now where there had once been uncertainty.

Just as Emil was about to mutter a lie of "no, of course not", he realized his hands were free, Marta wasn't holding him any more! Faster than you could blink, Emil darted down the path as fast as his legs could carry him. Branches swatted him in the face as he fled, not even bothering to look which way he was going, just as long as it was away from Marta.

He ran until he was breathless, and then he just kept on running. Suddenly, his feet were yanked out from under him - an elevated tree root catching him at the ankles in mid-stride sent him tumbling head over heels out of the forest . He was caught, much to his ironic relief, by a gloved pair of hands which extended from two violet cloaked arms joined to a head of lengthy red hair draped over broad, familiar shoulders.

"Ha, looks like I… win? Emil, what's the matter?" Richter stared down at the disheveled teen in his arms, all smug satisfaction drained from his voice once he saw Emil's terrified expression. "Hey, Emil! Are you alright?! Were you attacked by something?!" Richter lifted Emil to his feet and stood protectively in front of him, gripping Sol and Mani as he prepared to battle.

"No, Richter…" Emil gasped, "Not something… _Somebody!_… M-Marta… You've got to hide me from Marta!" He grabbed frantically at Richter, still barely able to breathe as he spoke in a shrill, raspy whisper.

"Marta?!" Richter's face contorted in disgust at the mention of the name. "That whiney little brat? What is she doing here?"

"Does it matter?! All I know is she's coming after me, and if she sees us together, we are in _so_ much trouble! There's no time to waste, you've got to hide me, quick!"

"Hide you _where_? There's nothing but open space out here! You were better off in those woods!"

Emil began stripping his clothes off anxiously. "You've gotta swallow me, now! She was _right_ behind me, you've got thirty seconds… maximum! Now come on, hurry up!"

Richter grimaced at just the idea of having to choke Emil down at that speed. He could eat fast but… not _that_ fast! "It would be easier for me to just kill her…" Richter grumbled as his stomach flip-flopped, not particularly enthused by Emil's request.

"Richter!" Emil gave him a dirty look that scolded him for what he had intended to be a jest.

"Jeez, why so serious? It was only a joke!" Richter rolled his eyes which were quickly forced wide open as Emil stuffed both of his hands into Richter's mouth, completely unannounced.

"Stop joking and start swallowing!" Emil demanded. Richter shook his head dismally, but obliged. It was one of the more unpleasant sensations Richter had ever experienced, having his throat muscles stretched and pulled against their will as Emil stood on tiptoe, forcing his arms further and further down Richter's esophagus without even waiting for the man to swallow. The whole endeavor was progressing at about twice the speed Richter was used to, and the sore, tingling, overstretched sensation that spread down his throat was becoming gag-inducing.

Richter groaned in discomfort, getting to his knees as he tried his best to keep pace with Emil, who was now cramming his shoulders into Richter's strained mouth. Gravity, Emil's frantic squirming, and Richter's painful, but rapid swallows, pulled Emil inside at record speed, but it wasn't fast enough. Marta burst out of the forest just in time to see Richter and what she correctly inferred to be Emil's feet slowly passing down the man's aching throat to join the rest of the blond teen inside the half-elf's equally sore belly.

Marta stood agape at a scene she almost couldn't believe, but all the evidence was there, and she couldn't ignore what lay indisputably before her eyes. Emil's traditional black and blue attire lay strewn haphazardly in the grass. The feet she had seen disappear into Richter's maw were certainly Emil's… The nearly identical ring that decorated the redhead's finger like a wedding band and that awkward, self-conscious grin he was giving her… Marta didn't want to believe it, but it had to be true! She didn't know what to find more disturbing, the fact that Emil had rejected her in favor of marrying Richter - a man who had once tried to kill them both - or the fact that the aforementioned man had just _swallowed_ what should have been _her_ fiancé.

She shrieked - it was all she could do at the moment - as the image cemented in her mind. Richter got slowly to his feet, a nervous sweat pouring down his forehead. "Now, now, j-just calm down. This, uhh… this isn't what it looks like…?" he tried dubiously to keep the girl calm for the express purpose of avoiding another "Aqua Episode".

Marta sputtered furiously, "Pfffwhuh huh?! N-not what it _looks_ like?! _You just __**ate**__ Emil!_" She pointed at the grotesque bulge that hung suspended below the man's chest. "And that had better be Emil's ring you're wearing, or he's going to have some _serious_ explaining to do when I cut him out of you!" She shouted at the redhead's distended gut, making sure that Emil could hear how enraged she was at him for apparently marrying Richter instead of her. The bulge flinched.

"Well, you see, it's all rather complicated…!" Richter backed slowly away from the fuming young girl, tense laughter betraying the fact that he took her remark about cutting him open very seriously - just as he should, one should never doubt the seriousness of a woman scorned.

Marta equipped her spinner. "Oh, no. You're not going anywhere, buddy…" She snarled up at Richter, bearing her teeth. "I know how to deal with monsters like you." She flicked her wrist to start the blades spinning and drew them close to Richter's face. "I'll give you 5 seconds to spit him out…" she dropped the blade to his jugular, "If you don't I'll slit your throat and go in after him myself!"

"W-wait! Marta!" Emil squeaked from inside Richter's stomach. "Please, don't! This was my idea, I asked Richter to do this! He won't digest me, you don't have to kill him!"

Marta turned her attention to the squirming bulge on which she was mounted (she had needed a foothold to gain a dominant position over the half-elf and get into a suitable position to lop off his head). "Of course I need to kill him! He ruined my fantasy! He stole you from me, and I intend to get you back!"

"Whoa, whoa, hang on. I didn't _steal_ anybody!" Richter said indignantly. "As a matter of fact, I resent your phrasing. I 'stole' him, like he was your _property_? What a selfish way to think! He has every right to be with whoever he wants, he doesn't 'belong' to anybody!"

"Shut up!", Marta growled, "Your five seconds are over!" She grabbed Richter's collar tightly and prepared to sever his head, blinded by a twisted, jealous love. Just as Richter was about to draw his own weapon to defend himself, the necessity to do so was eliminated. The moment that Marta had lifted her hand to end Richter's life, Aqua grasped it firmly with one hand and tore the shrieking girl off of the redhead by the scalp with her other.

"Stupid girl! How dare you attack Master Richter!" She held Marta in mid-air by a handful of orange hair as the feeble girl kicked helplessly in her grasp.

"Put me down, put me down! I have to save Emil!" Marta tried to wriggle free from Aqua's grip, with absolutely no success.

"He doesn't need saving! Don't you get it, you brat?! He _chose_ this! As much as I hate it, your old flame Emil and my precious Master Richter fell in love! There's nothing you or I can do to change that, and believe me, I tried!" She released Marta's hair and grabbed the girl's other flailing arm, securing it behind her back with the other as she returned Marta to ground level. "Do you understand yet, Marta? Even if you killed Richter, it wouldn't make Emil love you! You can't change this! You're just going to have to accept it; you and Emil aren't ever going to be together!"

"I don't want to accept it!" Marta wailed. "I want my Emil back! Emil!" She broke into tears and stamped her feet, bawling like a child throwing a tantrum.

Aqua let out a miffed sigh as she looked up at Richter. "Sheesh, did _I_ act like this, too?" Richter nodded. "Wow, I'm sorry, then… it must have been obnoxious." Marta continued to tug against Aqua as she kept on sobbing and cursing at Richter, and the puerile spectacle didn't cease until a familiar, dark, gravely voice interrupted.

"Well, now, this is an unbecoming display for you, my dear Marta." Everyone (minus Emil who was constricted and held rather immovably in Richter's belly) turned to the source of the voice. It was Ratatosk, who still bore a tremendous resemblance to Emil and the stolen physique that once belonged to Aster. Though he was a bit more feral in appearance, with a more defined musculature, and much more decoratively clad, many of his physical features bore the same basic resemblance to Emil's and - by association - Aster's. Apart from elementary differences in coloration - raven where there would have been blond, crimson were there should have been emerald, a paler complexion - he was otherwise Emil's twin.

"R-Ratatosk?!" Marta froze in mid-kick when she recognized the approaching figure. "What are you doing here?"

"I felt like going for a walk. There are still plenty of monsters wandering about that haven't re-forged their pact with the Centurions, so I thought I'd lend them a hand and tame a few while I was out, and much to my surprise, I find one of my Centurions squabbling with my little Marta." He sneered at the two girls, not particularly accusatory or castigatory, and more than anything, he seemed vaguely amused. "And you there, Richter. I wondered when I'd see you again…" He shot the half-elf a dark but not unfriendly grin. "The man who tried to kill me, huh? It's not everyday you run into a devoted arch nemesis on such friendly terms. You look well…" He glanced down at the redhead's pronounced midriff. "And if I'm not mistaken, that huge lump taking up space in that fat gut of yours is Emil. That nebbish kid still doesn't have the balls to stand up to you by himself, or am I missing some details?"

"Lot's of details…" Aqua put in, still keeping a firm grasp on Marta.

"I'm not sure I _want_ to know them!" Ratatosk laughed throatily. "But I will ask you, Marta, why you're whining here like an infant."

"I have to save Emil!" She resumed her struggle against Aqua. "That stupid half-elf took him form me!"

"Liar!" Aqua held Marta firmly in place, turning to Ratatosk to explain. "She's just mad that Emil loves Master Richter instead of her."

"Ah!" Ratatosk nodded with a devious smirk. "Now I see…" He strode over to Richter. "So this is what you've been doing to my counterpart… You horny bastard!" He laughed with apparent approval for the ribaldry. "Vorarephilia… It's quite the fetish, isn't it?" He gave Richter a rough pat on the shoulder; the unwanted physical contact with a person (or, more accurately, Summon Spirit) that he didn't much care for made Richter's skin crawl.

"Don't worry, Marta… _I_ still love you." Ratatosk returned to the young girl's side, looking her over as he spoke. "I don't suppose I've mentioned how beautiful you are? As a matter of fact… you look absolutely _delicious_!"

"D-delicious?! _Me?!_" Delicious was the _last_ adjective she had expected to hear. By "delicious", did he mean that he seriously intended to eat her?! "Oh, no, no, no! Absolutely not! You actually want to _eat_me?! It's out of the question!"

"Ah, but you see, Marta… You have no choice in the matter." A sadistic grin spread across Ratatosk's face. "Don't worry, I promise it'll be painless and I'll spit you back up eventually… I'll even let you keep your clothes on if you like."

"Forget that! I don't want to be eaten at all!" Marta struggled as hard as she could, but just like her many attempts before, she failed to escape Aqua's clutches.

"That's not going to help your case, y'know? I kind of prefer unwilling prey…" With that, his mouth opened wide, and as Marta let out one final shriek in protest, he engulfed her entire head.

Marta whimpered as all light was cut off and a hot, wet film of saliva coated her face. She felt her spinner forcibly removed from her hand and her rucksack unbuckled and cast aside. The slimy walls of Ratatosk's mouth pressed around her face on all sides and a squelching sound filled her ears as Ratatosk swallowed. She thought to herself that this was all impossible, that it must be a dream. It was physically impossible to swallow someone whole, right? There was no way it could be happening to her. But it was, and her steady progress down Ratatosk's throat soon validated its physical possibility. She was vaguely surprised that she hadn't suffocated yet, and the more she thought about it, the more improbable it seemed for her to be able to breathe while crammed inside of someone's esophagus.

Still, despite the suction around her, there was enough air to breathe comfortably, and even more amazing was that it lacked any sort of odor. As she felt her shoulders get sucked in, she decided putting up whatever kind of struggle she could manage was her best bet. After all, it had to be uncomfortable to have something squirming around in your throat, right? If she struggled enough, Ratatosk would just have to spit her out. She wriggled back and forth against the clingy tube of muscle only to find that however violently she attempted to thrash, the impact was absorbed by the pliant, conforming wall of flesh. Much to her dismay, she found the movement not only had no effect on Ratatosk, it actually propelled her further down. And worst of all, Ratatosk seemed to be enjoying it.

She was not pleased by this. She knew her legs were still free, so she attempted to deal a few painful kicks to Ratatosk's ribs. She was blessed with no such luck; both of her legs were caught mid-swing by what she presumed were Ratatosk's hands. There was nothing left now, nothing more she could do. Well, nothing except scream and cry as she was pulled farther and farther down toward Ratatosk's stomach. Marta soon felt her head squeeze though a small opening and into a less confining space; that was when the real panic set in.

Her forearms were firmly pinned at her sides by a pair of drool-smeared lips and her legs were still immovably fixed together by two steely hands. Fear forced angered shrieks and muffled threats from her as she plunged deeper and deeper into the abyss. She trembled, despite whatever efforts she had made to appear composed, the inherent truth of the matter had finally begun to sink in; she was being swallowed, and there was nothing within her power that could prevent it from happening.

Ratatosk, on the other hand, was quite pleased with the way things were going. As a Summon Spirit, he had never given human pleasures much thought, but after the journey he had shared while conjoined with Emil, even silly human notions seemed more appealing. Physical limitations did not apply as strictly to him as they did to humans, and though it was his first attempt, he found swallowing someone relatively the same size as he was to be a simple task.

That's not to say that it didn't require some effort; he had comparatively less experience than Richter and even Emil, and considering that his first victim was extremely uncooperative, he had considerably more trouble than Emil had during his first attempt. Still, that didn't stop him from enjoying every second. He had far fewer constraining notions about propriety and normalcy than Richter did, he didn't care in the slightest about the mildly disgusted look on Richter's face as the half-elf tried (without success) to avert his gaze. (He had never seen human - human [or more accurately Summon Spirit - human] vore in the third-person before, and he couldn't help but entertain his curiosity on the subject. After all, such an opportunity might not present itself ever again. Still, with Ratatosk and Marta as the subjects, Richter found it difficult to enjoy the spectacle at all.)

Despite the dreaded gaze that most would flinch self-consciously under, Ratatosk didn't waver. Once he had reached Marta's waist, he threw his head back and held the squirming girl's legs by the ankles as he continued to pack her into his stomach with the assistance of gravity. Marta had given up all hope by then, as her legs gradually folded in after her hips. She was too exhausted to struggle, too tired to scream, she could only wait for the inevitable end. The sludge caked in her hair and clothes was gradually soaking through, dampening the skin underneath. She felt her boots being unbuckled and removed before what felt like two hands settle against her back. She flinched at the touch. A throaty hum echoed around her as Ratatosk seemed to muse about her futile struggles. She elbowed the surrounding wall of flesh, earning a grunt in response, though it was more an acknowledging grunt than one of pain. The warmth crawled at last to the tips of her toes, and with a few final gulps, the last of Marta squished inside and the stomach closed around her.

She felt a sudden drop and was thrown onto her side by a second. She realized she was now resting on her side; Ratatosk must have decided to lie down. Stupid, lazy Summon Spirit… She delivered a few weak kicks to the lining of Ratatosk's stomach; they elicited no response. She tried writhing; the results were the same: no response. She tried digging her nails into the smooth muscle, but only dug trails in the viscous, mucosal coating, and the trails refilled almost instantly. She would have tried biting him if she thought it would get her out, but the way things were going, there didn't seem to be any hope of her escaping. Besides, there was nothing to bite into, and even if there was, she wasn't eager for a mouthful of the sticky mucous that coated Ratatosk's gut.

She sulked quietly as a bit of slime dribbled down her face. She could hear Ratatosk breathing, slow and raspy. He sounded far too relaxed for Marta's tastes. The low, rhythmic beating of his heart echoed around her, muffling what she presumed was Richter's voice, it was too low and distant to be Ratatosk's and too deep to be Emil's or Aqua's. She couldn't hear exactly what he was saying, but based on Ratatosk's response of "Don't mention it…" she assumed that the half-elf must have been thanking him.

She felt the two hands return to stroke her back, and she flung herself against them to shoo away the unwanted touch. Ratatosk let out a low belch but did not remove his hands. All her tears had been spent on the way down, and all her shouts used up as well; she could no longer cry or scream. Her throat was parched, but of course she couldn't ask for any water. So she just sat and sulked and wondered where her life had gone so terribly wrong; good people don't get eaten by Summon Spirits… Her shaky breaths were the only visible sign that she was alive.

Eventually, she felt gravity shift around her again; she was upright once more. She heard the gruesomely familiar sound of swallowing again, and she could only cringe and wonder what to expect. She gasped as cold water splashed down on her head. A series of continuous gulps brought splash after splash of water down on top of Marta; splashes that she could not avoid. Her dry throat prevented her from protesting, though she put up a good struggle to make her point clear. After a certain point, once Marta was thoroughly drenched, Ratatosk's thirst seemed to have been sated, and the sputtering waterfall ceased pouring down Marta's back.

She felt Ratatosk let out a sigh of contentment. That pissed her off. Her fear had subsided long ago, and her anger toward Ratatosk had been building since the end of her short-lived period of self-pity. Honestly, what right did that Summon Spirit have to enjoy himself at her expense? She wanted nothing more than to yell at him and kill that laid-back mood he'd settled into, but she wasn't going to risk a mouthful of that secondhand water that pooled on the bottom of her prison for succor. She heard Ratatosk mutter to someone that swallowing clothes was uncomfortable. Marta smirked, vaguely satisfied that at least it hadn't been all that pleasant for Ratatosk. She went on listening to half a conversation, inferring what the other participant must have been saying based on what Ratatosk's responses were. There was a lengthy discussion about the monster populace in recent months. She wasn't particularly interested in the conversation until she heard Emil's name come up.

She couldn't hear all of what was spoken, but managed to piece most of the story together from what she gleaned from fragments. Apparently, Emil had managed to kill a huge dragon, single-handedly. Marta swooned at the thought. Emil, her knight in shining armor, valiantly charging into battle and slaying a terrifying dragon. The mental image made her heart flutter. She, of course, inserted herself into the story, the damsel in distress; she was rather enjoying her little fantasy until she picked up on the fact that Emil had fought the dragon to save Richter. Yuck. _That_ was not a pleasant mental image. As a matter of fact, any mental picture of Emil with someone else made her skin crawl.

After that dream was crushed, there was a conversation on the state of affairs between Tethe'alla and Sylvarant, a few words back and forth about travel plans (apparently, Richter and Emil were heading to Flanoir next), and , quite unexpectedly, an apology from Ratatosk to Richter. Ratatosk had never shown any compassion or empathy to anyone (except in rare cases where he showed more sensitivity to Marta) and now for the first time, he was actually _trying_ to make amends for something, entirely of his own accord. Marta couldn't believe her ears.

"You know…" Ratatosk began. He was using the same gentle tone that was usually reserved for her, the only tone that made him sound genuinely sincere. "I… I really am sorry… for what I did to your friend."

For the first time during the conversation, Marta was able to hear Richter's response clearly. "If you really _were_ sorry, you'd stop wearing Aster's face." She could hear that he was struggling to suppress the resentment in his tone. A long silence stretched on between the two, it put Marta ill at ease.

Finally, in a hushed tone, almost so quiet that Marta couldn't hear it, Ratatosk's dusky voice responded. "This is the only form I have left, it's the only form that I can present myself to Marta with… It's the only way she'd recognize me. Can you imagine how hard it would be for her to readjust to me if she knew what I really looked like?" Another unearthly silence followed.

"I can see what you mean… but that doesn't excuse you from using an image that isn't yours."

"What about Emil, then?"

Marta could only imagine the terrifying look on Richter's face. "That has nothing to do with it! He didn't choose to assume this form, _you_ did!"

"He was a part of me. Think about it. How can you choose between two halves of the same person?"

"Because he's the half of you that _didn't_ kill Aster!" Even Marta could tell that Richter was losing ground; it was a slippery slope argument, and in all honesty, Richter really didn't have much else to use except emotional attachment to justify his preference for Emil.

"Perhaps, but he didn't stop me from killing Aster, either. Isn't that just as bad?"

Marta flinched at the sudden increase in volume as Richter responded; he must have been inches away from Ratatosk, screaming. "How _dare_ you talk like _you're_ the good person here! I can't say that there wasn't more Emil might have been able to do to stop you because I don't know the circumstances, but as far as I know, there was nothing he could have done. And even if there _was_, I can't blame him for not acting. Granted, if there was some way he could have saved Aster, I wish he would have done it, but that doesn't clear you of your sins! You chose to kill Aster, and that is a far more heinous offence than preventing it from happening!"

Ratatosk didn't seem phased by the threatening tone in the half-elf's voice, and continued to argue the moral status of Emil and himself. "So if a human kills another human, are we to say he is innocent because his conscience didn't prompt him not to act? Can you really argue that my situation is all that different? Emil is just as responsible as I am; we are the same person, after all…"

"I'll hear none of this! Your situation is completely different! If it were possible to split a man's id and superego, I would certainly condemn the id and absolve the superego of any given murderer, granted that murderers even have a conscience! To be perfectly honest, I would say Emil was indecent in not acting if there really _was_ something he could have done, but that doesn't mean he was morally wrong! And regardless of ethical standing, if I choose to like Emil and dislike you, that's my prerogative, and I don't need to justify myself to someone like you! I appreciate that you took care of Marta for me, but I must say, I'd rather not sit around discussing morality with someone I don't care for."

"Suit yourself, but If I were you, I'd try applying that logic to myself before I try to condemn others with it…"

"Go to hell!" The distant shout and the silence that followed told Marta that Richter had stormed off, taking Emil with him. She began contemplating her fate, formulating an escape plan, when she felt herself tilted once more on her side. She heard Ratatosk's breath and heart slow, and minutes later, a faint snoring. She silently cursed to herself. She was really in a tight spot now… both literally and figuratively…

Night had fallen in Palmacosta by the time Emil and Richter reached it. They had already booked passage on a barge to Flanoir the next morning. The walk had been awkward and quiet after the argument with Ratatosk, and any attempts Emil had made to engage Richter in conversation did not even earn him the redhead's eye-contact. Dinner was just as awkward, and though Emil had managed to recapture Richter's attention, the minimal conversation was sterile at best. While preparing for bed, Richter and Emil showered separately (the nonverbal cue Richter had made by locking himself in the bathroom made this decision emphatically one-sided) and the distance between them in bed was greater than ever.

Emil couldn't shake the thought that Richter might have been considering what Ratatosk had said about him, about how he was just as responsible for Aster's death as Ratatosk was. He kept trying to convince himself otherwise, wanting to believe that Richter loved him enough to know that he would have done anything to protect Aster if he had been able to. He was sure that Richter understood that he was powerless at the time, barely able to exist; as a matter of fact, he lacked any memory of coexisting with Ratatosk prior to Aster's death. And yet, he couldn't help thinking that Richter blamed him for it; the guilt he used to harbor for it was creeping up on him again.

Richter knew that was what Emil was thinking. He knew that train of thought was running through Emil's head, and though in the back of his mind, he would have liked to put a stop to it and clear up the awkwardness, he was too wrapped up in his own pain to even try. It was true - what Ratatosk had said was true, wasn't it? - about applying that logic to himself. He really was in the same spot, wasn't he? He had acted foolishly, trying to show how dark and sinister Ratatosk's intentions were when he, as well, had partaken of hedonistic and murderous intentions. How could he hold himself to a higher esteem than the man (or Summon Spirit) who had taken his friend's life when he had attempted to exact revenge on that man? In the process of seeking that revenge, he had inadvertently harmed so many others. So many innocents had to suffer just because he hadn't been able to handle his own suffering. Was he really no better than that monster who had killed Aster in cold blood? "An eye for an eye leaves the whole world blind", as they say… and now he, a sinner himself, had tried to pass judgment on another only to find that he was just as guilty of that same crime.

When Richter finally managed to stifle his thoughts and plunge his mind into sleep, he was tormented with hellish nightmares. All he could see was himself, gazing into a mirror, only to see Ratatosk's reflection. That sadistic grin widened, "You did it, too. We are the same." A cold sweat dripped down his face as he tossed and turned in his sleep, and suddenly he felt himself falling. Distorted memories whirled around him, shrouded in darkness, an evil smile. Crowned in flames, blood frothing on his lips, mangled corpses at his feet, and Ratatosk's sinister cackle resonating from his chest; it was a vision more horrific than he could handle.

Richter jolted awake, the drawn out cry of "No!" still leaving his lips as he flung himself into an upright position. The suffocating darkness in the room pressed down on him and his hair clung to his damp skin in a helter-skelter flourish; his heart was pounding against his chest as if in dire need to escape, and the patter of his perspiration raining on the sheets was almost too loud for him to stand. He felt feverish and nauseated and the gasps of air he had been taking in felt dusty and stale. He jumped at the gentle touch of Emil's hand on his shoulder, attempting to bring comfort to what was, unfortunately, an inconsolable mind.

Emil offered up a glass of lukewarm water from the nightstand, and Richter accepted it with trembling fingers. "Bad dream?" Emil asked quietly, though he knew it must have been; all he really wanted was to coax Richter to talk about it, thinking that if he could encourage a discussion, he could ease both their minds. Richter nodded, still not very eager to discuss the heart-pounding mental images still cemented in his mind. He took a few sips of the tepid water and grimaced.

"I need a _real_ drink…", the redhead muttered to himself as he slipped out of bed. The light mist in the out-door air and the still darkness of the starless sky told Richter that it would still be many hours before dawn would arrive. He shuffled across the room to his bag, taking out a flask of something quite a bit stronger than mead that he always kept around for "emergencies". He downed the entire contents. A couple more flasks of mead later, he finally felt like talking about it, though he might have been far better off trying to talk about it sober. He staggered back over to the bed, thumping down on the stiff mattress and turning to face Emil with bloodshot eyes. "Do you think I'm a horrible person?"

Emil was taken aback by the blunt question. "Of course I don't! I think you're a wonderful person; that's why you're my partner -"

"Then why do I _feel_ like a horrible person?" Richter glowered, seemingly at his boxers, because that's what he was staring at.

"Maybe because you drank about 3 bottles of mead and another bottle of liquor that smelled to be about 180 proof*?" Emil obviously did not approve of drowning one's troubles with liquor, but one could tell that the derision in his tone was derived more from disappointment that Richter had not offered him anything to drink than from moral discontent.

"No, I mean besides that." Richter slurred, wiping a bit of liquor flavored drool off his lips. "Only horrible people let others die as an indirect result of their ambitions… So I must be a horrible person."

"What are you talking about, Richter? When did you - ?" And then it hit him. Like a brick. _That's_ why Richter had been so upset. It wasn't what Ratatosk had said about his part in  
Aster's death at all; it was what Ratatosk had said about Richter's claims about murderers. It was true, through his actions, Richter had made many suffer for his cause, and though he never directly hurt anyone (himself, Marta, and the others excluded) several people had died because of his involvement in the Vanguard. And yet, despite all of that, Emil knew that Richter really was a good person. He could feel it, in every fiber of his being he could feel that Richter was a kind, warm, caring person. But… how was he going to prove that to Richter?

He thought for a long moment, frantically searching for some words of comfort he might use, but try as he might, none would come. Then, almost as if someone else had taken control of his mind, a solution formed, and his lips moved without his effort as speech poured naturally from him. "Do you think _I'm_ a horrible person, Richter?"

"What the hell?! No, of course not!" Richter exclaimed, flabbergasted. "You're the most sincere, kind, honest, loving, tender, selfless, perfect, beautiful, wonderful, amazing person I know! You're the exact opposite of a horrible person, you're -" Richter paused, lost in thought for a moment before he began to laugh hysterically.

An embarrassed and somewhat castigatory frown formed on Emil's face. "Wait… What's so funny?"

Richter calmed his laughter after a moment and spoke (though it only served to reveal to Emil that Richter was far too drunk to have a serious conversation). "H-have you ever noticed that 'terrible' and 'terrific' mean opposite things, but 'horrible' and 'horrific' mean exactly the same thing?!"

Emil let out an exasperated sigh. "Yeah, it's hilarious Richter… really…"

"I know, right?! Hey, you know something else? You can't say 'happiness' without saying -!"

"Shh, shh! Richter, keep it down. Other people are trying to sleep, you know." Emil cut Richter off mid-sentence, mostly because he wasn't too eager to hear how it would end.

Richter finished the sentence quietly to himself and snickered. Emil rolled his eyes. Finally, once Richter seemed to have regained some of his sanity, Emil continued his speech. "So, Richter…" Emil gently cupped the older male's face and directed it toward his own in order to keep his attention. "You don't think I'm a horrible person, do you?" Richter smiled winsomely and energetically and shook his head. "But you think that you _are_?" The half-elf sighed and nodded. "And do bad people and good people like each other?" Richter thought for a moment and hesitantly shook his head. "Well, isn't it obvious, then? You _must_ be a good person or we wouldn't get along, right?" This idea soothed Richter, but only for a moment; unfortunately, out of all the inhibitions liquor removed from him, reasoning and logic were not among them.

"Unless you're a bad person, too… which is probably more likely because I _know_ I'm a bad person. And sometimes good people are kind to bad people simply because they are kind and forgiving to everyone… I think that's why you can be a good person and still like me…"

Emil sighed. "Richter, come on. I know you aren't a bad person, I told you so before."

"Yeah, well… prove it, how can you be so sure? Because all I can see is the countless ways I've hurt people indiscriminately in my pursuit of revenge. I'm just like Ratatosk…"

"No, you aren't."

"Yes I am. Just because I didn't kill him doesn't mean my intention wasn't there. Good people don't commit murder…" Richter paused and amended his statement, foreseeing Emil's response. "Or _try_ to murder people."

"Richter…" Emil gasped in frustration. "Look, do you think bad people deserve to be punished?"

"Well… Yeah, I do…" Richter mumbled.

"And do you think that it's permissible for good people to be the ones to punish bad people?"

"Yeah, that seems reasonable…"

"So, just because you wanted to punish Ratatosk doesn't make you a bad person then, does it? Your intentions weren't murder, they were to balance the scales of justice, to do what was moral… or at least, moral in the Retributivist's* perspective." Emil tried his best to use what little knowledge he had on common theories of morality to soothe Richter.

"What about the countless lives I've destroyed, all the people who are dead because of my manipulation?"

"As far as I know, all you did was militarize the Vanguard, gave them the ability to defend themselves, gave them the means to do what they intended to do from the beginning. Even if you hadn't meddled in their affairs, they still could have ended up the same way… All you wanted to do was fix things. You were even willing to spend eternity burning your life-force just to protect the world and bring Aster back… A bad person would never do that. Bad people don't usually seek out punishment, unless they're psychotic, I guess… but you are neither a bad person, nor a sociopath. I just know you're not."

"You… you really believe that? That I'm not a bad person?"

"Of course! I've said so a dozen times you fool!" Emil threw his arms around Richter, dislodging a pocket of stale air from the half-elf's belly and earning a loud belch followed by a mead scented apology. Emil just shook his head and laughed. For a while, they just sat like that, holding one another; Richter stroked Emil's hair gently and Emil stroked Richter's belly gently in return.

"Th-thanks, by the way… Richter…" Emil whispered as he snuggled closer to his partner.

"What for?" Richter grunted, settling down into a more comfortable position on the bed; he was feeling rather sleepy, and he was just about ready to go back to bed. Thankfully, the booze and Emil's comfort had finally accomplished their mission, he felt better now.

"For hiding me from Marta. I never thanked you properly."

"Hey, don't mention it. I'll always protect you, 'cause I'll always love you." Richter yawned widely.

Emil smiled and replied, "See? Only a good person would say something like that." He planted a kiss on the redhead's cheek and slowly drifted off to sleep by his side.

Richter moaned, hunched over the railing on the deck of the barge. Hangovers and sea-sickness don't mix very well. The captain of the vessel had mused that if they lost their way, all they would have to do is turn around and follow the nearly constant trail of vomit all the way back to Palmacosta. Richter had tried dry crackers and candied lemon rind to settle his stomach, but it had done him no good, and said snacks were bobbing along in a trail of bile that floated alongside the boat. Emil pat Richter on the back, reassuring him that they only had a few more hours left before they reached Flanoir. Richter groaned and hurled another fresh liter of bile into the ocean. "Never… Again… I'll never… _ever_ drink again…"

"Well, that's a shame. They were going to have a wine tasting festival in Flanoir this week. I thought you might be interested, but now I suppose you won't enjoy it. Such a terrible shame…"

"Why… is that?" Richter gasped as he tried to hold down another mouthful of puke.

"Because after we got a little tipsy, I was planning on letting you do a little _me tasting…_"

Richter looked at him for a moment, then took several heavy swallows of water from his canteen, knowing full well what would happen. There was a long and painful-sounding session of continuous vomiting and dry-heaving for almost ten minutes straight before Richter finally lifted his head with a grin.

"Wha-what was that for?" Emil asked.

"I was making room…"

* * *

**Things that needed clarification:**

**proof: **Alcohol content in drinks is measured in units called proof. 200 proof would equal 100% alcohol content, so 180 proof is 90% alcohol.


End file.
